ESO Astronomy

ESO Astronomy The European Southern Observatory designs, builds & operates world-class observatories on the ground
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ESO carries out an ambitious programme focused on the design, construction and operation of even more powerful observing facilities. ESO has enabled the first picture of a planet around another star, measured the distance to the most remote object ever found, found the largest solar system yet around another star and contributed to the discovery of the Universe’s accelerating expansion due to the elusive dark energy.

Tunnel vision!Step inside the tunnels found below ESO’s Paranal Observatory. Tunnels such as this one connect the Unit T...
15/06/2026

Tunnel vision!

Step inside the tunnels found below ESO’s Paranal Observatory. Tunnels such as this one connect the Unit Telescopes, which comprise the Very Large Telescope (VLT), to the control building where the VLT and its instruments are operated by observing teams.

And no worries: despite the eerie, sci-fi atmosphere, no drooling, man-eating aliens are roaming there, just astronomers and engineers 😉

Read more: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw2624a/

📷 L. Sbordone/ESO

We're celebrating two birthdays with this image!The first is the ongoing birth of new stars within Gum 10 and Gum 11, th...
08/06/2026

We're celebrating two birthdays with this image!

The first is the ongoing birth of new stars within Gum 10 and Gum 11, the star-forming regions featured here.

The second is the birthday of the telescope that made this image possible: the VLT Survey Telescope (VST), which had its first light 15 years ago today 🎂

Hosted at ESO's Paranal Observatory in Chile, the VST is a former joint venture between ESO and the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF), now solely managed by INAF .

Happy birthday, VST, and thank you for 15 years of stunning views of our Universe 🤩

Read more: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw2623a/

📷 ESO/VPHAS+ team

03/06/2026

ICYMI For the first time, astronomers have found convincing proof that exoplanets could have magnetic fields 🧭

This was achieved by measuring winds on seven very hot, Jupiter-like exoplanets with ESO's Very Large Telescope & Gemini Observatory North.

Check out our video summary 🎥 👇

Full story: https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2606/

Astronomers have found the strongest hints yet of magnetic activity in exoplanets! 🧲Using ESO's Very Large Telescope and...
02/06/2026

Astronomers have found the strongest hints yet of magnetic activity in exoplanets! 🧲

Using ESO's Very Large Telescope and Gemini Observatory North, a team of scientists collected data on exoplanets’ wind speeds. From this, they were able to infer the strength of their magnetic fields, which turned out to be comparable to those found in our Solar System!

Read more: https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2606/

Artist’s impression: ESO/M. Kornmesser, L. Calçada

01/06/2026

The spinning origins of a planetary system 🌀

Taken with ESO’s Very Large Telescope over a period of four years, these images show the rotating disc of gas and dust around the young star AB Aurigae.

While the overall rotation of the material within the disc is governed by the star’s gravity, there are features like “twists” signalling the places where planets could be forming 🪐

Read more: https://www.eso.org/public/videos/potw2622a/

📹 ESO/A. Boccaletti et al.

Join the dots!Emitted by the four Unit Telescopes of ESO’s Very Large Telescope, laser beams shine across the magnificen...
25/05/2026

Join the dots!

Emitted by the four Unit Telescopes of ESO’s Very Large Telescope, laser beams shine across the magnificent Southern sky.

But what is creating those glowing beads of light on each beam? Find out here: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw2621a/

📷 A. Berdeu/ESO

A virtual telescope with a diameter of up to 200 metres, that is what we get when we combine the light gathered by the U...
21/05/2026

A virtual telescope with a diameter of up to 200 metres, that is what we get when we combine the light gathered by the Unit and Auxiliary Telescopes at Paranal.

Called the Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI), it can capture some of the sharpest views of the Universe.

How does this work? Here's your VLTI 101, with 👇

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTk_bMcr4rs

The mirror is on its way!One of the mirrors of ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), wrapped to protect it from the harsh en...
18/05/2026

The mirror is on its way!

One of the mirrors of ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), wrapped to protect it from the harsh environment of Chile’s Atacama Desert, is slowly transported downhill to a special facility a couple of kilometres away at basecamp.

ESO’s Extremely Large Telescope — currently under construction — also watches silently from Cerro Armazones, seen in the background of this image.

This process is repeated for all VLT mirrors every 18 months. Here's why: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw2620a/

📷 L. Sbordone/ESO

Adapted for extremes 💪Today’s Picture of the Week features two distinct families: a collection of ALMA Observatory anten...
11/05/2026

Adapted for extremes 💪

Today’s Picture of the Week features two distinct families: a collection of ALMA Observatory antennas and a trio of vicuñas, a type of camelid, related to llamas and alpacas.

Unlike in almost every way, the subjects of this image are linked by their extremely hostile home environment, high up in the Chilean Andes.

Discover how they withstand the harsh local conditions: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw2619a/

📷 Sergio Otarola Photography /ESO

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