spacetoday.net: Univ. of Texas to join Giant Magellan Telescope project

Posted: Sat, Mar 8, 2014, 9:53 AM ET (1453 GMT)
Giant Magellan Telescope illustration (GMTO)

The recent of the University of Texas agreed Friday to join a project to build the world's largest telescope in Chile, agreeing to contribute $50 million to the effort. The Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) will consist of seven mirrors each 8.4 meters in diameter, aligned to create a single telescope with an effective aperture of 24.8 meters. Total cost of building the GMT is estimated to be $1 billion; the University of Texas plans to provide $100 million of that total. The $50-million contributed approved by university regents Friday will be augmented by fundraising to reach the planned $100 million total. Another Texas university, Texas A&M, plans to provide $50 million for GMT construction. Several other institutions in the US, Australia, and South Korea are also partners on the GMT project, which expects to be completed in 2020.