This page describes an image ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT) at Paranal Observatory with a lunar halo
Image caption:
The Very Large Telescope on Cerro Paranal in Chile has four reflecting telescopes each with a primary mirror 8.2m across. In this image one dome is open and firing laser beams into the sky. These lasers create artificial stars in the sky that can be used to adjust the telescope optics to remove the blurring effect of the Earth's atmosphere. This process is known as adaptive optics.
In the sky the Moon is surrounded by a bright halo. This is caused by light from the moon reflecting inside ice crystals in the Earth's atmosphere.
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Image credit:
Juan Carlos Muñoz-Mateos/ESO Credit Link
Related glossary terms:
Adaptive Optics
, Halo
, Observatory
Categories:
Telescopes, Instruments and Observatories
Image license: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) icons
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Captions in Different Languages:
Image caption: Il Very Large Telescope di Cerro Paranal, in Cile, dispone di quattro telescopi riflettenti, ciascuno con uno specchio primario di 8,2 metri di diametro. In questa immagine una cupola è aperta e spara raggi laser nel cielo. Questi laser creano in cielo stelle artificiali, che possono essere utilizzate per regolare l'ottica del telescopio così da eliminare l'effetto di sfocatura dell'atmosfera terrestre. Questo processo è noto come ottica adattiva.
Nel cielo, la Luna è circondata da un alone luminoso. Questo fenomeno è provocato dalla luce della Luna, che si riflette all'interno dei cristalli di ghiaccio dell'atmosfera terrestre.
Image credit: Juan Carlos Muñoz-Mateos/ESO
Related glossary terms: L'alone , Osservatorio , ottica adattiva Caption translation status: Approved by a reviewer
Caption translators: Giuliana Giobbi
Caption reviewers: Rosa Valiante, Rodolfo Canestrari
