© 2020 GMTO Corporation. "The structures of the next generation of extremely large telescopes are so massive, their instruments so sensitive, and the seismic environments they are located in are so intense, that there's really no way to avoid seismic protection. The Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT), slated for completion in 2021, will be one of the world’s next giant earth-based telescopes, with ten times the resolving power of the Hubble Space Telescope. The telescope is expected to have a resolving power 10 times greater than the Hubble Space Telescope. Because the Giant Magellan Telescope's seismic isolation system serves as the telescope foundation, it must be very reliable. These discoveries revolutionized our view of the universe. As of November 2017 , five mirro… The system will only engage during extreme earthquakes that will typically occur on a 1-2-year time scale. For … After a major earthquake, the friction pendulum isolators may not return the telescope exactly back to its normal operation position. Las Campanas Peak (“Cerro Las Campanas”), where the GMT will be located, has an altitude of over 2,550 meters or approximately 8,500 feet. Finally, since the giant mirrors are essentially hollow, they can be cooled with fans to help equalize them to the night air temperature, thus minimizing distortion from heat. Perhaps one of the most exciting questions yet to be answered is: are we alone? Engineers designing the Giant Magellan Telescope have solved an immense design challenge never attempted before: Protecting a 22-story rotating observatory and seven of the world's largest monolithic mirrors from being damaged by earthquakes. 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All rights reserved | Privacy Policy, https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201216005264/en/, VOICE INTERCONNECT AND PEERING CONFERENCE OCTOBER 5, 2010, Ecosystem Demo - CommLogik Corporation - Part 3, HP WFO: A New Position for a Brand you Trust, TantaComm has a "Fresh Message" for the Contact Center Marketplace, Changing the User Experience with HD Voice, Phone.com Transforms Small Businesses Using VoIP and the Cloud, eBook: The Power of Emotion in Customer Service, eBook: The Innovator's Guide to the Digital-First Contact Center, Checklist: Power of Emotion. This is why the great collecting area of the GMT is so important. These actuators, controlled by advanced computers, will transform twinkling stars into clear steady points of light. Slated for Las Campanas Observatory in Chile’s Atacama Desert at 8,500 ft./2,550m, the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) will have an 80ft./24.5m diameter mirror (actually seven giant … The Giant Magellan Telescope fast-tracks development of revolutionary optical technologies necessary to transform humanity’s view and understanding of the universe at first light. The Giant Magellan Telescope just got a nice chunk of change to help develop and test the advanced technologies that will give the future observatory such sharp vision. Reviewers reported that the preliminary designs have successfully met the seismic protection requirements that, as Dr. Bigelow said, are "absolutely crucial to assuring that the telescope can do its job for 50 years. This is accomplished by using a honeycomb mold, whereby the finished glass is mostly hollow. The Giant Magellan Telescope’s primary mirror comprises seven 8.4 … © 2020 Technology Marketing Corporation. The GMT has a unique design that offers several advantages. Commissioning of the telescope is scheduled to begin in 2029. The Magellan telescopes began operations in the early part of this decade and have already contributed new data and insights to a wide range of topics in astronomy, cosmology, and astrophysics. The Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT)- the product of more than a century of astronomical research and telescope-building by some of the world's leading research institutions - will open a new window on … More detailed information on the scientific objectives is available here. It will be constructed in the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile. South African Large Telescope (SALT) This 30-foot (9.2-meter) telescope represents the largest … PASADENA, Calif.–(Business enterprise WIRE)–Dec 16, 2020– Engineers planning the Giant Magellan Telescope have solved an enormous design challenge never tried ahead of: Preserving a 22-story … An artist’s rendering of the Giant Magellan Telescope in Chile. It will be constructed at the Las Campanas … The GMT primary mirrors are made at the Richard F. Caris Mirror Lab at the University of Arizona in Tucson. The colossal telescope will feature six giant … In addition to the vast distance—the very closest star to earth is four light-years away—the biggest problem is the glare of the host star which blocks out most of the reflected light of a small distant planet. The GMT, to be constructed in … It will consist of seven 8.4 m (27.6 ft) diameter primary segments, that will observe optical and near infrared (320–25000 nm ) light, with the resolving power of a 24.5 m (80.4 ft) primary mirror and collecting area equivalent to a 22.0 m (72.2 ft) one, which is about 368 square meters. How did the first galaxies form? The innovative seismic protection design earned top marks from an independent review panel of international experts in early November, paving the way for the next generation in observatory design. The GMT is the world's first extremely large ground-based telescope to start construction. All Rights Reserved. The location of the GMT also offers a key advantage in terms of seeing through the atmosphere. It is in this way that the GMT will offer images that are ten times sharper than the Hubble Space Telescope’s. Use of images must be accompanied by photographer/artist credit and copyright notice. But in the 1920s, Edwin Hubble, using the famous 100-inch telescope at Mount Wilson, determined that there were other galaxies too. Two of the next-generation Giant Magellan Telescope's (GMT) seven huge primary mirrors are now done. The site is almost completely barren of vegetation due to lack of rainfall. The glass mold is placed inside a giant rotating oven where it is “spin cast,” giving the glass a natural parabolic shape. Instead of one large mirror, the GMT will have seven separate mirrors working together. The Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) will be the world's largest telescope when it is completed in 2025. The first large-scale observatories were established by the scientific societies of the Enlightenment with the financial … The Giant Magellan Telescope is designed to have a resolving power ten times greater than the Hubble Space Telescope — one of the most productive scientific achievements in the history … The Giant Magellan Telescope is designed to have a resolving power ten times greater than the Hubble Space Telescope. We need a seismic isolation system to keep the telescope operational," said Dr. Bruce Bigelow, the Giant Magellan (News - Alert) Telescope's Site, Enclosure, and Facilities Manager. But while this remote region boasts more than 300 clear nights of the galactic center per year, it also is home to some of the biggest, the most frequent, and the most destructive Earthquakes ever recorded. Pier Recentering System: A hydraulic system that can return the telescope to its original resting and operational position following a major earthquake. The Giant Magellan Telescope will be one of the few super giant earth-based telescopes that promises to revolutionize our view and understanding of the universe. What is the fate of the universe? The Giant Magellan Telescope's seismic isolation system consists of two lines of defense that keep it safe and allow a return to operations within hours to weeks, depending on the magnitude of a seismic event. Commissioning of the telescope … But taking pictures of these so-called “extrasolar” planets, which orbit other stars, is extraordinarily difficult. Light from the edge of the universe will first reflect off of the seven primary mirrors, then reflect again off of the seven smaller secondary mirrors, and finally, down through the center primary mirror to the advanced CCD (charge coupled device) imaging cameras. The GMT will have a resolving power 10 times greater than the Hubble Space Telescope. How did stellar matter from the Big Bang congeal into what we see today? Upon completion, the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) will be the largest optical telescope in the world, producing images of the universe with 10 times the clarity of the Hubble Space Telescope. "That's where the hydraulics of the pier recentering system come in, which can move the 6,000 metric tons of telescope and pier and return the telescope to a fraction of an inch from where it was before the earthquake. It will be … Image: M3 Engineering. "The isolation system will return the telescope to its 'home' position within a couple of inches, but that's not good enough," said Dr. Bigelow. All users of this website are reminded that any redistribution or copying of copyrighted material requires permission of the copyright owner. The GMT project is the work of a distinguished international consortium of leading universities and science institutions. 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