The ESO 3.6-metre telescope and the Milky Way

The telescope visible in this image is the ESO 3.6-metre telescope at La Silla. It is mounted with the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) which is dedicated to the discovery of exoplanets. In the smaller dome to its left is the Coudé Auxiliary Telescope, which was decommissioned in 1998. Above the telescope the Milky Way and its galactic bulge can be seen.