@@ESOobservatoryMore importantly it is one of if not the last step in training the next generation of graduates in the field to produce what they have specialized into as their educational career progressed. With that being said we can slow down the pipeline now that we have JWST and LHC focusing on replacement and a telescope for 75 years from now 😊
Incrível a minúcia e cuidado...o engenho e arte para ver o reflexo mágico, a prata para moldar de forma nítida e mais brilhante que nunca e vamos sorrir! Que história épica ...mais uma etapa de algo maravilhoso e extraordinário do ELT!!
With the amount of mirrors this telescope will need, I think it can be safely considered a literal factory for mass production(and not some manufacturing site for a one off very specific thing). Out of curiosity what is the goal(it seems to currently still be in development so it will probably change) for time needed to make a single mirror?
There are different companies involved. The blanks are made of Zerodur, and they're cast by SCHOTT in Germany. They're later polished by Safran Reosc in France. At Safran they also install the blanks on supports manufactured by VDL ETG Projects B.V. in the Netherlands. Once ESO verifies that the segments are ok they're shipped to Chile, where we coat them with silver following the workflow explained in this video.
