World's largest space observatory opens in Chile

Not sure if this was posted as search didn't yield any results. Definitely a plus for astronomy buffs. Lets see how many new objects are discovered.

Llano Chajnantor, Chile: What is thought to be the world's largest ground-based observatory opened on Wednesday in northern Chile, wielding unprecedented power to peer into the remotest regions of the universe.

The ALMA space observatory was inaugurated here on a desert plateau some 5,000 meters (16,400 feet) above sea level, at a ceremony attended by President Sebastian Pinera and other dignitaries.

"ALMA is a huge telescope 16 kilometers (10 miles) in diameter," said the facility's director Thijs de Graauw, as it was declared officially opened.

LINK

I watched a documentary last year about constructing this array, im glad the days finally arrived!

Some absolutely MAD engineering went into this project and i cant wait to see the sweet rewards

This plateau reserve has been the site of several previous telescope ventures.

en.wikipedia.org...

And the new Pope came from just across the border in Argentina.

Originally posted by Biigs
I watched a documentary last year about this array, im glad the days finally arrived!

Some absolutely MAD engineering went into this project and i cant wait to see the sweet rewards

Without a doubt. Especially with the clear climatic conditions, it should provide more input and perspectives from the southern hemisphere.

Originally posted by Cauliflower
This plateau reserve has been the site of several previous telescope ventures.

en.wikipedia.org...

And the new Pope came from just across the border in Argentina.

and so.....what is the connection?

Great catch! I'm really looking forward to seeing what it comes up with as they start really working with it and running it through what it can do. I'm thinking there is still a great deal out there we aren't even aware of yet.

And here is the wikipedia link to ALMA itself.

en.wikipedia.org...

Originally posted by Aleister
And here is the wikipedia link to ALMA itself.

en.wikipedia.org...

From that link:

The transporters, which featured a driver's seat designed to accommodate an oxygen tank to aid breathing the thin high-altitude air, placed the antennas precisely at the site.

That makes me wonder if all the people who work there are accustomed to the high altitude? Or do they have supplemental oxygen sources for the operators of the observatories?

I'd expect the locals to be acclimated to high altitude, more than the visitors from other countries.

There's a lot of interesting stuff going on at radio frequencies, so this should give us some good data.

reply to post by hp1229


Both the scientists at ALMA and the Pope are listening to God.
Reminds me of the early years following the "fall" of Rome.
The Byzantine period had kind of a Schizo split between Secular and Religious heads of State.

They are using the ALMA detectors to look back in time to the earliest evidence of Gods creation.

www.slashgear.com...

The electromagnetic residue from 12 billion years ago has been so heavily Lorenz contracted and gravitationally lensed that getting a clear picture is difficult. I've always believed that there are a lot more radio observables in the night sky than there are radio sources. Sounds like they are finally combining some of these observables so that a map of the older radio sources will give us a better idea of how the universe came into existence.

Perhaps the detectors at ALMA are much more massive than would be practical to build in space and can be easily swapped out as needed. A a fleet of supercharged trucks has a lot less overhead than a space program.