World's largest optical telescope takes shape

This drone footage shows ESO's Extremely Large Telescope taking shape in the Chilean Atacama Desert. We can see the insulating cladding being used to dress the dome and the white lattice structure at the centre — now almost complete — that will support the ELT’s 39-m primary mirror. Around the 1:30 mark, we can also see two arc-shaped tracks, currently protected with tan wooden plates, bracketing the white lattice. These tracks will allow the telescope to move in altitude. The grey beams at opposite sides of the lattice, seen more clearly at the 2:15 mark, will support the so-called Nasmyth platforms –– two tennis-court-sized areas where the scientific instruments will rest.

Find out more here: https://www.eso.org/public/videos/pot...

Credit: G. Hüdepohl (atacamaphoto.com)/ESO. Music: Jon Kennedy. Acknowledgements: CIMOLAI