Blog

The world's biggest optical telescope will celebrate its first birhtday. In July 2009, the Gran Telescopio Canarias was completed on the island of La Palma.

La Palma is one of the smaller, most westerly islands in the Canaries, situated about 50 miles from of Tenerife. Its location, lack of almost any air pollution and the high altitude of the main peak on the island make it perfect for astronomy, hence the decision to build the new Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) there. The construction of the huge telescope has taken nine years and completion was recently marked by a ceremony attended by King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia. There were difficulties during the construction due to the remote location at the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos, which sits at an altitude of 2396m. The facility can only be reached by car, with the road from Santa Cruz requiring cautious driving, especially during the winter months.

Sources say the telescope has cost between 110 and 120 million pounds and over 1000 people have been involved in its design and construction. The main mirror of the telescope is over 10 metres in diameter and is made up of 36 hexagonal pieces. The University of Florida has made a 5 million dollar contribution towards the cost of the telescope which entitles them to usage of the facility for 20 nights per year.

Visits to the observatory are not normally open to the general public, but group visits can be arranged for school, college or professional parties with an involvement in astrophysics. The observatory does however organise special summer visits, where people are given a two hour tour of the facilities. Dates for these summer visits are publicised during April each year and, as places are very limited, reservations must be made in advance. It's a smart idea to do this immediately after booking your flights to Palma. The other astronomy facility in the Canaries is located at the Observatorio del Teide on Tenerife, which organises sessions for visitors on Thursday morning between April and December. Again, you will need to contact the facility in advance to confirm arrangements and reserve a place.