NASA asks: Will we know life when we see it?

In the last decade, we have discovered thousands of planets outside our solar system and have learned that rocky, temperate worlds are numerous in our galaxy. The next step will involve asking even bigger questions. Could ...

Hunting molecules to find new planets

It's impossible to obtain direct images of exoplanets as they are masked by the high luminous intensity of their stars. However, astronomers led by UNIGE propose detecting molecules present in the exoplanet's atmosphere in ...

First light for SPIRou, exoplanet hunter

SPIRou, the new planet-hunting spectropolarimeter developed for the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT), has successfully recorded its first starlight. Ten years after it was first designed and following four intensive ...

First ELT main mirror segments successfully cast

The first six hexagonal segments for the main mirror of ESO's Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) have been successfully cast by the German company SCHOTT at their facility in Mainz. These segments will form parts of the ELT's ...

First light for ESPRESSO—the next generation planet hunter

The Echelle SPectrograph for Rocky Exoplanet and Stable Spectroscopic Observations (ESPRESSO) has successfully made its first observations. Installed on ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile, ESPRESSO will search for ...

ESO signs contracts for the ELT's gigantic primary mirror

The unique optical system of ESO's Extremely Large Telescope consists of five mirrors, each of which represents its own significant engineering challenge. The 39-metre-diameter primary mirror, which will be made up of 798 ...

Construction begins on the world's first super telescope

Scientists are a step closer to understanding the inner-workings of the universe following the laying of the first stone, and construction starting on the world's largest optical and infrared telescope.

page 2 from 4