Observatories

The Extremely Large Telescope’s Dome is on the Move

Construction of the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) reached a milestone, with the structure of the dome completed just enough where…

2 months ago

The Biggest Telescope in the World is Half Built

The European Southern Observatory continues to build the largest telescope in the world, the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT). Construction of…

9 months ago

Many of the World’s Greatest Observatories Suffer from Some Light Pollution

In a recent study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, an international team of researchers examined…

1 year ago

Arecibo Won’t Be Rebuilt

The National Science Foundation announced last week that it won’t rebuild or replace the iconic Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico,…

1 year ago

Astronomers Watched a “Near-Sun” Comet Disintegrate as it Flew too Close to the Sun

Comets that venture close to the Sun can transform into something beautiful, but sometimes they encounter incineration if they get…

2 years ago

Here are All of Hubble’s Observations in One Picture

Over the past 32 years, Hubble has made about 1.4 million observations of our Universe. Physicist Casey Handmer was curious…

2 years ago

Ground-Based Observatories Could use Starshades to see Planets too

All hail the occulter: an orbiting starshade for ground-based telescopes. (more…)

3 years ago

Astronomy Jargon 101: Adaptive Optics

In this series we are exploring the weird and wonderful world of astronomy jargon! Adjust your eyeglasses to read about…

3 years ago

The Carina Nebula. Seen With and Without Adaptive Optics

Ever wonder how modern astronomical observatories take such clear images of distant objects? Advances in mirror design have allowed for…

3 years ago

Climate Change is Making the Atmosphere Worse for Astronomy

Modern astronomical telescopes are extraordinarly powerful. And we keep making them more powerful. With telescopes like the Extremely Large Telescope…

3 years ago