"Estamos entusiasmados en poner esta piedra fundamental del Telescopio Gigante Magallanes en un momento tan excitante para la astronomía”, dijo uno de los responsables del proyecto, Taft Armandroff, según un comunicado de la organización difundido a la prensa este miércoles.
El telescopio dotado de una inmensa cúpula equivalente a un edificio de 22 pisos estará situado en el desierto de Atacama, una zona del norte de Chile que ya alberga otros observatorios astronómicos, por su característico clima seco, sin nubes, sin niebla y sin contaminación atmosférica o lumínica.
Se espera que el Telescopio Gigante Magallanes empiece a funcionar en 2021 y pueda revelar la existencia de galaxias lejanas y antiguas.
El costo del proyecto rondará los 1.000 millones de dólares.
[mundo.sputniknews.com]
11/11/15
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Chilean President Michelle Bachelet put hammer to stone on an Andean mountaintop on Wednesday evening to mark the start of construction for one of the world's most advanced telescopes, an instrument that may help shed light on the possibility of life on distant planets....
ReplyDeleteThe Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT), scheduled to be completed by 2024, will have a resolution 10 times that of the Hubble spacecraft. Experts say it will be able to observe black holes in the distant cosmos and make out planets in other solar systems with unprecedented detail.
Such technology, astronomers say, will help humans determine how the universe formed and if planets hundreds of light years away could support life.
"With this science, there are no limits to the possibilities that are open," said Bachelet, standing on the GMT's site, a wind-buffeted, 8,250-foot (2,500-meter) mountaintop.
"What it does is open the door to understanding," she said.........REUTERS...........http://www.voanews.com/content/astronomers-begin-work-on-giant-chile-telescope/3055186.html
12/11/15