In addition, we want to position Dutch industry and stimulate economic growth in the Netherlands. Kees Buijsrogge, Director of Space & Scientific Instrumentation at TNO: ‘in the field of astronomy, we want to develop instrumentation that helps scientists understand our universe.
TNO, in cooperation with Demcon Focal, will apply its expertise to design the overall laser launch system, including the optics and precision mechanics that help bring deep space into focus. Now, ESO is awarding a contract to TNO again to help make the ELT successful. For the VLT, TNO developed the state-of-the-art optical tube assemblies for the laser launch telescopes, among other contributions. TNO’s capabilities were already proven during ESO’s development of the Very Large Telescope (VLT). The Extremely Large Telescope’s adaptive mirrors can then ‘correct’ the telescope’s vision in real time to produce the clearest images possible of the specific area being explored. By identifying the atmospheric distortion on the known qualities of the artificial stars, the overall level of distortion can be calculated. TNO’s laser launch telescopes project artificial stars onto the edge of the atmosphere, which offer a point of reference for the telescope. Ground-based telescopes have the power to see deep into the universe, but the Earth’s atmosphere distorts the images. With the help of TNO’s laser guide star launch telescope technology, the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) will provide insight into some of the greatest astronomical questions of our time, from the birth of stars to the search for signs of life on exoplanets in other star systems. In the project, TNO will collaborate with Demcon Focal as a major sub-contractor.
It has selected TNO to provide a key enabling technology that will allow the telescope to produce better views of the universe than have ever been possible. The European Southern Observatory (ESO) is creating the world’s largest telescope.
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