What is the competition for three super mega telescopes that brings great progress to astronomy?

The great expectation in astronomical circle is the super gigantic telescope which is equipped with a huge reflector and can distinguish the planet in space far away. Article writing At present, there are three super-gigantic telescopes under development, and each other has a technically superb aspect, but a spectacular competition is spreading with another factor.

The Billion-Dollar Telescope Race - Issue 11: Light - Nautilus
http://nautil.us/issue/11/light/the-billion_dollar-telescope-race

What attracts attention from the world as the next generation super mega telescope under developmentHuge Magellan Telescope·European super large telescope·30 meter telescopeThree. Huge Magellan telescope is in ChileLas Campanas ObservatoryIt is a telescope built in the astronomical telescope, which is a combination of seven mirrors with a diameter of 8.4 m as the main mirror, the focal length is 18 m, one of the astronomical telescopes launched into outer spaceJames Webb Space TelescopeIt will be used in conjunction with.

Europe's ultra large telescope combines 798 hexagonal mirrors to achieve 39 m in diameter next generationLarge light infrared telescope. It is in Chile as well as the huge Magellan telescopeAtacama DesertScheduled to be installed in. The 30-meter telescope is a telescope that observes cooperation with the Space Telescope, consisting of a complex mirror that combines 492 hexagonal mirrors with a main mirror with 30 m diameter as its name suggests. All three super mega telescopesDistant galaxyYaBlack Hole,Dark matter, It is expected to be able to observe the field of difficulty, such as the early universe.

ByNASA's Marshall Space Flight Center

Not only the technical specifications and the size of the caliber are the reason why the three telescopes are sharpening the brilliance. The super huge telescope is becoming a chair-taking game of countries and international companies seeking fame and benefits brought about by development. Michael Bolte, one of the 30-meter telescope development project committee member, said, "Because we need a huge amount of money to complete the ultra-giant telescope, we fly around the world and look for investors, but that is because of other super huge telescope The same thing for the development team, for example, when going to negotiate a stake in Beijing, the development team of the European super-large telescope just finished talking and sometimes returned. "

The 30 meter telescope development project succeeded in obtaining a huge equity investment from China and the project committee is headquartered in BeijingChinese Academy of Sciences National ObservatoryMr. Shude Mao is enrolled. In addition to China, Japan, the United States, Canada, India are planning to carry a huge construction cost.

ByMarcmo

Meanwhile, the European Super Large Telescope Project Team adopted a different form of investment method than the 30 meter telescope. In order to participate in the development of the European super large telescope, 14 European countries and Brazil will jointly operateEuropean Southern ObservatoryIt is necessary to enter the Board of Executive Officers (ESO), and it is in the form of participating and turning a few percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) to the ESO budget.

For China whose GDP was 9 trillion dollars (about 944 trillion 485.3 billion yen) in 2013, it is considered that he participated in the 30-meter telescope development project because the investment form of the European super-large telescope paying a few percent of GDP is disadvantageous It is. Huge Magellan telescope secures budget from institutions in Australia and South Korea as well as American institutions such as Washington-Carnegie Association, Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The national and international organizations are competing for the three telescopes.

ByWelsh Government / Llywodraeth Cymru

The directors of the three super mega telescope projects say "We are the one who completes the telescope first", but it is the opinion of many scientists that completion will be around 2022. I am wondering who controls the telescope race, but it is important that it is important that all projects are completed. Regardless of the order of completion, it is obvious that it will bring great progress to the world of astronomy just by completing it.