New telescope captures millions of galaxies, thousands of asteroids in debut observations, according to reports
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory has released its first images captured using the largest digital camera ever built, offering a glimpse into millions of distant galaxies and revealing over 2,000 previously undetected asteroids, according to media reports on Monday.
The observatory, located atop Cerro Pachon in Chile's Andes mountains, is expected to revolutionize space observation over the next decade, according to CNN.
The facility is a joint initiative by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the US Department of Energy's Office of Science.
Among the highlights of the initial 10-hour test observations was the discovery of 2,104 new asteroids, including seven near-Earth asteroids.
Officials confirmed that none pose a threat to Earth.
“NSF-DOE Rubin Observatory will capture more information about our universe than all optical telescopes throughout history combined,” CNN quoted Brian Stone, NSF's acting director, as saying.
The observatory's 8.4-meter (over 27.5-foot) Simonyi Survey Telescope is scheduled to achieve “first light” on July 4, marking the beginning of scientific observations.
The Rubin Observatory will eventually scan the Southern Hemisphere's sky every few nights for 10 years, compiling an ultrawide, high-resolution time-lapse movie of the universe.
This survey, the Legacy Survey of Space and Time, aims to capture transient cosmic phenomena such as exploding stars and roaming comets.
A video released by the observatory includes a mosaic made from 1,100 images showing a zoom out from two galaxies to about 10 million galaxies, representing only 0.05% of the 20 billion galaxies Rubin is expected to observe.
Another mosaic, composed of 678 images, depicts the Trifid and Lagoon nebulae in the Sagittarius constellation.
The high-resolution composite captures never-before-seen clouds of gas and dust thousands of light-years from Earth.
Sandrine Thomas, telescope project scientist, said: “It has such a wide field of view and such a rapid cadence that you do have that movielike aspect to the night sky.”
The observatory is also designed to identify changes in brightness and track asteroids that may be on a collision course with Earth.
Over the next two years, it is expected to detect millions of asteroids, surpassing the global average of 20,000 per year.
The observatory will also play a crucial role in investigating cosmic mysteries, including dark matter and dark energy.
“Rubin has enormous potential to help us learn what dark energy really is,” said Dr. Aaron Roodman of Stanford University, who led the camera's development.
Named after Vera Rubin, whose work helped confirm the existence of dark matter, the observatory is expected to continue her legacy of discovery.
“Through this remarkable scientific facility, we will explore many cosmic mysteries,” Stone said.
