Pages

Tuesday 16 April 2013

THIRTY METER TELESCOPE: THE WORLD'S LARGEST OPTICAL TELESCOPE


New Picture 23
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.

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.

New Picture 24
The 492 primary mirror segments are arranged in a circle 30 meters (98 feet) across.
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…


More information at Thirty Meter Telescope website.

Video: Thirty Meter Telescope Overview





No comments:

Post a Comment

Please adhere to proper blog etiquette when posting your comments. This blog owner will exercise his absolution discretion in allowing or rejecting any comments that are deemed seditious, defamatory, libelous, racist, vulgar, insulting, and other remarks that exhibit similar characteristics. If you insist on using anonymous comments, please write your name or other IDs at the end of your message.