Read more about the article Comparison of images with and without Adaptive Optics
This image shows a comparison of the new image (top) of the western wall of the Carina Nebula taken by the international Gemini Observatory, a Program of NSF’s NOIRLab, and an image of the same region without Adaptive Optics (bottom). The top image was taken with the Gemini South telescope with the GSAOI instrument using the GeMS adaptive optics system, and the bottom image was taken at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory with the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope using the NEWFIRM instrument.

Comparison of images with and without Adaptive Optics

Adaptive optics control the surfaces of a telescope's optic - often the main mirror - to take into account the turbulence in the Earth's atmosphere. By doing this, the distortion…

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Read more about the article ESOblog: Twinkle, twinkle little star, but not on our watch
Twinkling stars are far more desirable to poets and romantics than to astronomers. Even in the near-pristine seeing conditions over Chile, home to ESO’s fleet of world-class telescopes, turbulence in Earth’s atmosphere causes stars to twinkle, blurring our view of the night sky. These four laser beams are specially designed to combat this turbulence. The intense orange beams dominating this image originate from the 4 Laser Guide Star Facility, a state-of-the-art component of the Adaptive Optics Facility of ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). Each beam is some 4000 times more powerful than a standard laser pointer! Each creates an artificial guide star by exciting sodium atoms high in the Earth’s upper atmosphere and causing them to glow. Creating artificial guide stars allows astronomers to measure and correct for atmospheric distortion, by adjusting and calibrating the settings of their observing equipment to be as accurate as possible for that particular area of sky. This gives the VLT a crystal-clear view of the cosmos, so it can capture the wonders of the Universe in stunning detail. This amazing capture was taken using a drone flown over the VLT by ESO Photo Ambassador Gerhard Hüdepohl.

ESOblog: Twinkle, twinkle little star, but not on our watch

ESOblog: Twinkle, twinkle little star, but not on our watch   Great blog article from the ESO on adaptive optics - mechanical systems to deform the shape of a mirror…

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Schmitt-Cassegrain Collimation Made Easy Using a Duncan Mask | Alpha Lyrae

  Schmitt-Cassegrain Collimation Made Easy Using a Duncan Mask | Alpha Lyrae Very simple method of achieving excellent collimation of a Schmitt-Cassegrain using a home made Duncan Mask. Source: alpha-lyrae.co.uk/2013/12/31/schmitt-cassegrain-collimation-made-easy-using-a-duncan-mask/

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Thirty Meter Telescope forges ahead with Canary Islands site – Physics World

  Thirty Meter Telescope forges ahead with Canary Islands site – Physics World Officials at the protest-hit telescope seek a construction permit for the island of La Palma Source: physicsworld.com/a/thirty-meter-telescope-forges-ahead-with-canary-islands-site/

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A $1 billion telescope that will take pictures 10 times sharper than Hubble’s is now officially under construction

They've started building the GMT!!! A $1 billion telescope that will take pictures 10 times sharper than Hubble's is now officially under construction In astronomy, cutting-edge technology often begins with…

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