The William Herschel Telescope (WHT), located in La Palma, Spain, can survey 1,000 stars per hour, until it records a total of five million.
The scientists launched one of the most powerful telescopes on Earth, with new technology that will reveal how the galaxy us, in unprecedented detail.
The William Herschel telescope (WHT), located in La Palma, Spain, can survey 1,000 stars per hour, until it records a total of five million.
An ultra-fast mapping device attached to the telescope will analyze the composition of each star and the speed at which it is traveling. Thus, it will show how our galaxy was formed over billions of years.
Professor Gavin Dalton of the University of Oxford has spent over a decade developing the device, known as ‘Weave’. “It’s a fantastic achievement by a lot of people who made it happen and it’s great that it’s working,” he said.
The Weave has been installed in the telescope, which is located high on a mountain top in La Palma. It has 80,000 separate parts and is an engineering marvel.
In each patch of sky that William Herschel focuses on, astronomers determine the positions of a thousand stars.
Weave is able to calculate the speed, direction, age and composition of each star it observes, essentially creating a cinematic film of stars moving through our galaxy. According to Professor Dalton, it will be possible to reconstruct the entire formation of the galaxy in unprecedented detail.
“We will be able to trace the galaxies that have been absorbed as the galaxy has formed over cosmic time and see how each absorption triggers the formation of new stars,” he said.
Dr Marc Balcells, who is in charge of the telescope, told the BBC that he believes the Weave will lead to a major change in our understanding of how galaxies form.
“Weave will answer questions that astronomers have been trying to answer for decades, such as how many pieces come together to make a large galaxy, and how many galaxies came together to make the Milky Way?”
Dr Cecilia Farina, a machine expert involved in the project, said the Weave would make “astronomical history”.
“There are so many things we’re going to discover that we didn’t expect to find,” he said. “Because the Universe is full of surprises.”
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