Was it a good coating?

An engineer makes the first visual inspection of a VLT primary mirror surface after the coating. Since telescopes spend the night under the stars, the mirrors accumulate on their surfaces a certain amount of dirt which reduces the reflectivity and degrades the image. For this reason, the VLT 8.2-metre primary mirrors (M1s) need to be cleaned periodically. The cleaning of the M1s is a very delicate operation which takes place every 18 months and involves removing the aluminium by chemical washing and then recoating the mirror.

Bildnachweis:

ESO

Über das Bild

ID:paranal-1100
Typ:Fotografisch
Veröffentlichungsdatum:15. Oktober 2010 20:03
Größe:2912 x 4080 px

Über das Objekt

Name:Very Large Telescope
Typ:Unspecified : People : Scientist
Unspecified : Technology : Observatory : Telescope
Kategorie:Paranal

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