World's largest optical telescope gets go-ahead: 30m mirror will let astronomers look 13 BILLION light years away
By Mark Prigg, Daily Mail, 15 April 2013.
By Mark Prigg, Daily Mail, 15 April 2013.
Plans to build the world's largest optical telescope [the Thirty Meter Telescope] on top of a volcano in Hawaii have been approved. The plan by California and Canadian universities call for a 30m telescope, the largest ever created. The US$1 billion telescope would be able to observe planets that orbit stars other than the sun and enable astronomers to watch new planets and stars being formed.
The 492 primary mirror segments are arranged in a circle 30 meters (98 feet) across.
Image source: Thirty Meter Telescope.
Image source: Thirty Meter Telescope.
It should also help scientists see some 13 billion light years away for a glimpse into the early years of the universe. Construction costs are expected to top US$1 billion. The telescope's segmented primary mirror, which is nearly 100 feet (30 meters) long, will give it nine times the collecting area of the largest optical telescopes in use today…
Video: Thirty Meter Telescope Overview
Top image: Thirty Meter Telescope
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