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European Southern Observatory

"ESO" redirects here. For other uses, see ESO (disambiguation). For the European Space Agency, see ESA.

European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere
AbbreviationESO[1]
Formation1962 (1962)
TypeIntergovernmental organisation
PurposeResearch organisation for astronomy
HeadquartersGarching, Germany
Membership
16
Official language
English, French, German
Director General
Xavier Barcons
Websitewww.eso.org
Trailer of the European Southern Observatory

The European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere,[2] commonly referred to as the European Southern Observatory (ESO), is an intergovernmental research organisation made up of 16 member states for ground-based astronomy. Created in 1962, ESO has provided astronomers with state-of-the-art research facilities and access to the southern sky. The organisation employs over 750 staff members and receives annual member state contributions of approximately €162 million.[3] Its observatories are located in northern Chile.

ESO has built and operated some of the largest and most technologically advanced telescopes. These include the 3.6 m New Technology Telescope, an early pioneer in the use of active optics, and the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which consists of four individual 8.2 m telescopes and four smaller auxiliary telescopes which can all work together or separately. The Atacama Large Millimeter Array observes the universe in the millimetre and submillimetre wavelength ranges, and is the world's largest ground-based astronomy project to date. It was completed in March 2013 in an international collaboration by Europe (represented by ESO), North America, East Asia and Chile.[4][5]

Currently under construction is the Extremely Large Telescope. It will use a 39.3-metre-diameter segmented mirror, and become the world's largest optical reflecting telescope when operational towards the end of this decade. Its light-gathering power will allow detailed studies of planets around other stars, the first objects in the universe, supermassive black holes, and the nature and distribution of the dark matter and dark energy which dominate the universe.

ESO's observing facilities have made astronomical discoveries and produced several astronomical catalogues.[6] Its findings include the discovery of the most distant gamma-ray burst and evidence for a black hole at the centre of the Milky Way.[7][8] In 2004, the VLT allowed astronomers to obtain the first picture of an extrasolar planet (2M1207b) orbiting a brown dwarf 173 light-years away.[9] The High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) instrument installed on the older ESO 3.6 m telescope led to the discovery of extrasolar planets, including Gliese 581c—one of the smallest planets seen outside the Solar System.[10]

  1. ^ "ESO Glossary of Acronyms". Retrieved 2018-09-07.
  2. ^ "ESO's Organisational Structure". Retrieved 2018-09-07.
  3. ^ "Member States". 2017-04-02. Retrieved 2018-06-15.
  4. ^ "ALMA website". Retrieved 2011-09-21.
  5. ^ "Welcome to ALMA!". Retrieved 2011-05-25.
  6. ^ "ESO Archive". Archived from the original on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2011-04-28.
  7. ^ Tanvir, N. R.; Fox, D. B.; Levan, A. J.; Berger, E.; Wiersema, K.; Fynbo, J. P. U.; Cucchiara, A.; Krühler, T.; Gehrels, N.; Bloom, J. S.; Greiner, J.; Evans, P. A.; Rol, E.; Olivares, F.; Hjorth, J.; Jakobsson, P.; Farihi, J.; Willingale, R.; Starling, R. L. C.; Cenko, S. B.; Perley, D.; Maund, J. R.; Duke, J.; Wijers, R. A. M. J.; Adamson, A. J.; Allan, A.; Bremer, M. N.; Burrows, D. N.; Castro-Tirado, A. J.; et al. (2009). "A gamma-ray burst at a redshift of 8.2". Nature. 461 (7268): 1254–1257. arXiv:0906.1577. Bibcode:2009Natur.461.1254T. doi:10.1038/nature08459. hdl:10261/18184. PMID 19865165. S2CID 205218350.
  8. ^ Gillessen, S.; Eisenhauer, F.; Trippe, S.; Alexander, T.; et al. (2009). "Monitoring stellar orbits around the Massive Black Hole in the Galactic Center". The Astrophysical Journal. 692 (2): 1075–1109. arXiv:0810.4674. Bibcode:2009ApJ...692.1075G. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/692/2/1075. S2CID 1431308.
  9. ^ Chauvin, G.; Lagrange, A.-M.; Dumas, C.; Zuckerman, B.; et al. (2004). "A giant planet candidate near a young brown dwarf. Direct VLT/NACO observations using IR wavefront sensing". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 425 (2): L29. arXiv:astro-ph/0409323. Bibcode:2004A&A...425L..29C. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:200400056. S2CID 15948759.
  10. ^ "The HARPS Home page". Archived from the original on 2019-03-23. Retrieved 2011-09-21.

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