ESO’s VLT Telescope

As Orion graces the evening sky, enjoy an infrared view courtesy of the VLT

23 November 2019 Astronomy Now

A favourite target for amateur and professional astronomers alike, the Orion Nebula is once again gracing the autumn-winter skies in the Northern Hemisphere. It is just as glorious in the infrared, as seen by the Very Large Telescope and the HAWK-I camera.

Heavy element creation confirmed in neutron star merger

29 October 2019 Astronomy Now

For the first time, astronomers have identified a specific heavy element – strontium – created in the wake of a cataclysmic neutron star merger.

VLT images suggest fourth-largest asteroid may be a dwarf planet

29 October 2019 Astronomy Now

New observations of the asteroid Hygiea reveal a nearly spherical shape, indicating the body meets the basic qualifications for dwarf-planet status.

ALMA provides a fresh look at a cosmic jellyfish

30 September 2019 Astronomy Now

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array captures the glowing tentacle-like tail of molecular debris streaming away in the wake of a spiral galaxy as it plows through the gas permeating an enormous galactic cluster.

Double asteroid tracked by VLT in planetary defence test

4 June 2019 Astronomy Now

ESO’s Very Large Telescope successfully tracked and imaged a fast-moving double asteroid in a key test of ongoing planetary defence efforts.

A stellar nursery bubbles up in the Large Magellanic Cloud

8 February 2019 Astronomy Now

Vast bubbles of ionised hydrogen gas are illuminated by hot young stars in gargantuan stellar nurseries like this one in the nearby Large Magellanic Cloud. This complex assembly of bubbles is host to a wide variety of objects, including one massive stellar object emitting a 33-lightyear-long jet.

As Orion graces the evening sky, enjoy an infrared view courtesy of the VLT

Heavy element creation confirmed in neutron star merger

VLT images suggest fourth-largest asteroid may be a dwarf planet

ALMA provides a fresh look at a cosmic jellyfish

Double asteroid tracked by VLT in planetary defence test

A stellar nursery bubbles up in the Large Magellanic Cloud

Habitable worlds orbiting dwarf stars may not be commonplace after all

Viewing the moon through a VERY large telescope

Time-lapse shows Beta Pictoris b sailing through its orbit

Infant galactic supercluster found in early universe