The construction of the Extremely Large Telescope has reached a significant milestone with the completion of its steel skeleton. The telescope, which is being developed on the Cerro Armazones mountain in Chile’s Atacama Desert by the European Southern Observatory (ESO), is set to be the world’s largest visible- and infrared-light telescope and is expected to have its “first light” by 2028.
A recent nighttime photo taken from inside the dome on April 3 showcases the progress of the telescope with the Milky Way overhead and the night sky filled with stars. The dome, which stands at 262 feet high and 289 feet wide, is now being fitted with dark blue panels that will serve as protective insulated cladding to cover the entire structure.
During the day, the dome will remain closed with air conditioning to protect the telescope from the extreme environment of the Atacama Desert. The dome will open at night to allow
