Giant Radio Telescope ALMA Receives its Final 66th Antenna

The ALMA Observatory is to receive its final antenna, the 66^th one on Monday . By the end of the year all 66 antennas will start functioning as a telescope.

The giant radio telescope placed in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile received its final 66^th antenna for the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) Project. This kick starts the beginning of new observations in the Universe using light with millimeter and sub millimeter wavelengths.

Manufactured by the European AEM Consortium, the 12-metre-diameter dish marks the successful delivery of a total of 25 European antennas. This is the largest ESO contract till date.

North America has contributed 25-12 meter antennas to the observatory and 16 antennas were delivered by East Asia. By the end of this year, the total 66 millimeter/submillimeter- wave radio antennas will function as one telescope in an array that will stretch across 16 kilometers in the Chajnantor Plateau, in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile, according to a press release.

 In March 2013, the ALMA observatory was inaugurated by Sebastian Pinera, the President of Chile. With the delivery of the 66^th antenna, the construction phase of ALMA antenna is over. This offers a promising future for novel discoveries in astronomy.

 "This is an important milestone for the ALMA Observatory since it enables astronomers in Europe and elsewhere to use the complete ALMA telescope, with its full sensitivity and collecting area," Wolfgang Wild, the European ALMA Project Manager, said in a statement.

ALMA telescope observes the universe and helps astronomers to solve the long-hidden mysteries of cosmic origins. Light in this spectrum of wavelengths comes from some of the coldest as well as distant cosmic objects that include cold cloud gases, dust surrounding new born stars and distant galaxies.

At the submillimeter wavelength the universe is unexplored as the telescope needs arid atmospheric conditions similar to Chajnantor and advanced telescope technology.

ALAM was earlier tested in several science projects and it yielded successful science results.