Un luogo per svelare i misteri dell'universo freddo
Questa magnifica foto panoramica presa da Babak Tafreshi, un ambasciatore fotografico di ESO, mostra gli ultimi raggi di luce solare che illuminano l'altipiano di Chajnantor nel deserto cileno di Atacama. Quest'altipiano è il luogo dove si trova il telescopio Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX), che si può vedere a sinistra dell'immagine. Da questo remoto posto sulla Terra, a 5000 metri di altitudine sul livello del mare, APEX studia l'"universo freddo".
APEX è un telescopio di 12 metri di diametro, che osserva la luce a lunghezze d'onda millimetriche e submillimetriche. Osservando con APEX, gli astronomi possono vedere fenomeni che sarebbero invisibili a lunghezze d'onda più corte. Questo telescopio permette lo studio delle nubi molecolari - le dense regioni costituite da gas e polvere cosmica nelle quali nascono le nuove stelle - che sono scure e oscurate dalle polveri se osservate in luce visibile o infrarossa, ma che sono molto luminose a queste lunghezze d'onda relativamente lunghe. Gli astronomi usano questa luce per studiare le condizioni chimiche e fisiche nelle nubi. Quest'intervallo di lunghezze d'onda è ideale anche per lo studio delle più vecchie e più distante galassie nell'universo.
Dal suo esordio nel 2005, APEX ha prodotto molti risultati scientifici importanti. Per esempio APEX si è associato al Very Large Telescope di ESO per osservare la materia che viene strappata dal buco nero al centro della Via Lattea (eso0841), un risultato che figura nelle 10 più importanti scoperte astronomiche di ESO.)
Gruppi di "penitenti" bianchi sono visibili sul suolo attorno ad APEX. Le "penitentes" (termine spagnolo per penitenti) sono un curioso fenomeno naturale scoperto nelle regioni d'alta quota, tipicamente a più di 4000 metri sopra il livello del mare. Si tratta di aguzze cuspidi di neve compressa o ghiaccio, con il loro lato più sottile diretto verso il Sole, che raggiungono altezze da qualche centimetro fino a diversi metri.
APEX è una collaborazione tra il Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR), l'Onsala Space Observatory (OSO) e l'ESO. Il funzionamento di APEX a Chajnantor è affidato all'ESO.
L'antenna di 12 metri di diametro di APEX è un prototipo di antenna per un altro telescopio a Chajnantor, l'Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). ALMA - quando sarà completato, nel 2013 - avrà una rete di 54 antenne di 12 metri e 12 antenne di 7 metri. L'ESO è il partner europeo in questo complesso astronomico internazionale, che è una collaborazione tra Europa, America del Nord e Asia dell'est, in cooperazione con la Repubblica del Cile.
Links
Crediti:ESO/B. Tafreshi (twanight.org)
Riguardo l'immagine
| Identificazione: | potw1244a |
| Lingua: | it-ch |
| Tipo: | Fotografico |
| Data di rilascio: | Lunedì 29 Ottobre 2012 10:00 |
| Grandezza: | 19056 x 3359 px |
| Field of View: | 50° x 15° |
Riguardo all'oggetto
| Nome: | Atacama Pathfinder Experiment, Chajnantor, Panorama |
| Tipo: | Unspecified : Technology : Observatory : Telescope |
Mounted Image
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