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    ESO VLT tagged posts

    Metal Scar found on Cannibal Star

    February 28, 2024, Categories  Uncategorized

    A bright white-blue sphere, a star, sits in the upper left of this image on a deep blue background. The top of the star is shaded darker, and it is accompanied by white-blue spherical curved lines that close on the star at its top and bottom. In front of this, in the bottom and right of the image, are many almost black rocky chunks. Parts of them are lighter, lit up where they are facing the star.
    When a star like our Sun reaches the end of its life, it can ingest the surrounding planets and asteroids that were born with it. Now, using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT) in Chile, researchers have found a unique signature of this process for the first time — a scar imprinted on the surface of a white dwarf star. The results are published today in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

    When a star like our Sun reaches the end of its life, it can ingest the surrounding planets and asteroids that were born with it. Now, using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT) in Chile, researchers have found a unique signature of this process for the first time — a scar imprinted on the surface of a white dwarf star...

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    Galactic Fireworks: New ESO images reveal stunning features of Nearby Galaxies

    July 17, 2021, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    A team of astronomers has released new observations of nearby galaxies that resemble colourful cosmic fireworks. The images, obtained with the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT), show different components of the galaxies in distinct colours, allowing astronomers to pinpoint the locations of young stars and the gas they warm up around them. By combining these new observations with data from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), in which ESO is a partner, the team is helping shed new light on what triggers gas to form stars.

    A team of astronomers has released new observations of nearby galaxies that resemble colourful cosmic fireworks...

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    ESO’s VLT working as 16-meter Telescope for first time

    February 14, 2018, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    The ESPRESSO instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope in Chile has used the combined light of all four of the 8.2-meter Unit Telescopes for the first time. Combining light from the Unit Telescopes in this way makes the VLT the largest optical telescope in existence in terms of collecting area. This picture shows in highly simplified form how the light collected by all four VLT Unit Telescopes is combined in the ESPRESSO instrument, located under the VLT platform. Credit: ESO/L. Calçada

    The ESPRESSO instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope in Chile has used the combined light of all four of the 8.2-meter Unit Telescopes for the first time. Combining light from the Unit Telescopes in this way makes the VLT the largest optical telescope in existence in terms of collecting area. This picture shows in highly simplified form how the light collected by all four VLT Unit Telescopes is combined in the ESPRESSO instrument, located under the VLT platform. Credit: ESO/L. Calçada

    The ESPRESSO instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope in Chile has used the combined light of all four of the 8.2-meter Unit Telescopes for the first time. Combining light from the Unit Telescopes in this way makes the VLT the largest optical telescope in existence in terms of collecting area...

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