Test-Bed Telescope 2 joins asteroid protection efforts
06 May 2021
Instrument at ESO s La Silla Observatory will survey fast-moving near-Earth objects.
On the lookout: TBT2
Efforts to identify and monitor near-Earth objects, including asteroids that could pose a risk of impact, have taken a step forward at Chile s La Silla Observatory.
The European Space Agency s Test-Bed Telescope 2 (TBT2), the second of two instruments designed to test hardware and software for a future network of more advanced telescopes, has started operations at the the European Southern Observatory site.
TBT2 features a 56-centimeter glass-ceramic primary mirror, a relatively moderate size allowing the telescope to act as a technology demonstrator for important functions such as robotic real-time control and autonomous data processing.
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IMAGE: The new Test-Bed Telescope 2, a European Space Agency telescope, is housed inside the shiny white dome shown in this picture, at ESO s La Silla Observatory in Chile. The telescope. view more
Credit: I. Saviane/ESO
Part of the world-wide effort to scan and identify near-Earth objects, the European Space Agency s Test-Bed Telescope 2 (TBT2), a technology demonstrator hosted at ESO s La Silla Observatory in Chile, has now started operating. Working alongside its northern-hemisphere partner telescope, TBT2 will keep a close eye on the sky for asteroids that could pose a risk to Earth, testing hardware and software for a future telescope network.
The European Space Agency’s Test-Bed Telescope 2 at ESO’s La Silla Observatory in Chile. The 56-cm (22-inch) telescope is now working with a northern hemisphere partner to look for threatening asteroids, testing hardware and software for a future telescope network. Image: F. Ocaña/J. Isabel/Quasar SR
Part of the world-wide effort to scan and identify near-Earth objects, the European Space Agency’s Test-Bed Telescope 2 (TBT2), a technology demonstrator hosted at ESO’s La Silla Observatory in Chile, has now started operating. Working alongside its northern-hemisphere partner telescope, TBT2 will keep a close eye on the sky for asteroids that could pose a risk to Earth, testing hardware and software for a future telescope network.
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