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ESO firma contrato para el espejo preliminar del M5 del ELT

28 de Junio de 2024

Hoy, el Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) de ESO ha dado otro paso hacia su finalización en el plazo previsto. En la sede central de ESO en Garching, Alemania, y con participación a distancia desde el Reino Unido, la organización firmó un contrato con Glyndwr Innovations Limited (una subsidiaria de propiedad absoluta de la Universidad de Wrexham) en Gales, Reino Unido, para la producción del espejo preliminar del M5 del ELT. En caso de retrasos en la producción del M5, se utilizará como el quinto espejo del innovador diseño de cinco espejos del ELT cuando el telescopio vea la primera luz.

El espejo M5 es una parte crucial del diseño del sistema de óptica adaptativa del ELT: ajustará su posición hasta 10 veces por segundo sin doblarse para permitir que el telescopio obtenga las imágenes más nítidas posibles. Como el resto del ELT, el M5 lleva la tecnología al límite: con 2,7 por 2,2 metros, es el mayor espejo con inclinación jamás fabricado. Está hecho de carburo de silicio, un material muy rígido pero muy ligero. El bloque del M5, la pieza moldeada de material que luego se pule para convertirse en el espejo, se terminó hace poco. Se soldaron seis segmentos de carburo de silicio y luego se cubrieron con una capa muy delgada del mismo material, depositada átomo por átomo. Esta capa de deposición era necesaria para poder pulir el espejo con una precisión inferior a la centésima parte del grosor de un cabello humano, la siguiente etapa del proceso de fabricación.

Dado que nunca antes se había producido un espejo de carburo de silicio tan grande, con requisitos de pulido tan estrictos, existen riesgos asociados con su fabricación. En concreto, el equipo del ELT en ESO ha deducido que el riesgo de producción actual es lo suficientemente alto como para retrasar potencialmente el cronograma de todo el proyecto del ELT.

Para garantizar que el ELT esté listo para observar los cielos antes de que finalice la década, ESO se ha asociado con Glyndwr Innovations para crear un espejo M5 alternativo, denominado espejo preliminar del M5, que se utilizará para poner el telescopio en funcionamiento y demostrar su desempeño. Este espejo estará formado por una sola pieza del más convencional ZERODUR©, un material vitrocerámico que se ha utilizado en telescopios astronómicos durante décadas. Debido a que las propiedades de ZERODUR© son diferentes a las del carburo de silicio, este espejo preliminar será más pequeño que el M5, de 2,2 por 1,8 metros, y no podrá demostrar todas las capacidades de óptica adaptativa del telescopio. Sin embargo, es un excelente sustituto para los primeros meses de funcionamiento del ELT, cuando se realicen varias observaciones para probar y calibrar sus distintos sistemas.

El equipo de Glyndwr Innovations ahora tiene la apasionante tarea de esmerilar y pulir el bloque del espejo preliminar del M5 (que está siendo producido por la empresa alemana SCHOTT), así como de montar las interfaces en el espejo y entregar el producto terminado de forma segura y puntual en sitio de construcción del ELT en Cerro Armazones, en el desierto de Atacama en Chile. Glyndwr Innovations también diseñará, fabricará y suministrará el equipo auxiliar necesario para manipular, almacenar y transportar el espejo, y desarrollará un banco de pruebas para medir con precisión la forma del espejo durante su fabricación.

Cuando el ELT comience sus observaciones a finales de esta década, será el ojo más grande del mundo en el cielo, y se espera que avance en nuestra comprensión de la energía oscura, los exoplanetas y las primeras épocas del Universo.

Contactos

Bárbara Ferreira
ESO Media Manager
Garching bei München, Germany
Tel: +49 89 3200 6670
Email: press@eso.org

Sobre el anuncio

Identificador:ann24011

Imágenes

Foto grupal en la firma del acuerdo del espejo preliminar del M5 del ELT
Foto grupal en la firma del acuerdo del espejo preliminar del M5 del ELT
Firma del acuerdo del espejo preliminar del M5 del ELT
Firma del acuerdo del espejo preliminar del M5 del ELT

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