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El ELT de ESO recibe los sensores de borde y actuadores más precisos en la historia de la astronomía
25 de Octubre de 2024
Tras años de trabajo y miles de sensores de borde y actuadores después, se han completado los últimos lotes de estas piezas de alta tecnología para el espejo principal del Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) de ESO.
Con un diámetro de 39 metros, este espejo (M1) es el más grande jamás construido para un telescopio óptico; demasiado grande para estar hecho de una sola pieza, consta en cambio de 798 segmentos individuales. Cada segmento hexagonal tendrá múltiples sensores unidos a sus bordes, y estará montado sobre tres actuadores de posición. Los sensores de borde, alrededor de 4500 pares, y los actuadores, alrededor de 2400, son fundamentales para ajustar con precisión la posición de todos los segmentos y hacer que funcionen como una sola unidad. Para lograr una forma de espejo con una curvatura perfecta y uniforme, los sensores de borde medirán posibles desalineaciones, que luego serán corregidas por los actuadores ultraprecisos.
Los sensores del ELT son los más precisos jamás utilizados en un telescopio. Son capaces de medir la posición relativa de los segmentos con una precisión de unos pocos nanómetros. Si un grillo se posara en la esquina de un segmento y lo moviera una millonésima de milímetro, los sensores serían capaces de detectar esa pequeña alteración. Los sensores fueron fabricados por el consorcio FAMES, una cooperación entre los especialistas en sensores Micro-Epsilon Messtechnik (Alemania) y Fogale Nanotech (Francia) que se creó específicamente para este objetivo.
Los actuadores de posición proporcionarán soporte a los segmentos, controlándolos activamente en tres direcciones, conocidas como pistón, punta e inclinación. Esto implica mover pesos considerables, ya que cada segmento del espejo pesa 250 kg. Diseñados y desarrollados por Physik Instrumente (PI, Alemania), estos actuadores únicos, que llevan la tecnología al límite, podrán ajustar suavemente la posición de los segmentos con una precisión de apenas un par de nanómetros.
Una vez entregados a ESO, los sensores de borde y los actuadores de posición se enviarán a Chile, donde luego se integrarán con los segmentos del espejo y dentro del telescopio, respectivamente. El ELT se encuentra actualmente en construcción en la cima del Cerro Armazones, en el desierto de Atacama en Chile. Una vez finalizado, hará descubrimientos únicos, revolucionarios y emocionantes que cambiarán nuestra comprensión del cosmos.
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Bárbara Ferreira
ESO Media Manager
Garching bei München, Germany
Tel: +49 89 3200 6670
Email: press@eso.org
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