Chilean Science Minister visits ESO’s Paranal Observatory

On 10 and 11 of August, the Chilean Science Minister Flavio Salazar visited ESO’s Paranal Observatory. This is the first time the new Science Minister visits an ESO site, with the purpose of strengthening the connections between ESO and Chile. Additionally, the visit provided an excellent opportunity for the Minister to get familiar with ESO’s operations and facilities.

The science minister was welcomed by ESO’s Director General, Xavier Barcons, ESO’s Representative in Chile, Luis Chavarría and ESO’s Director of Operations, Andreas Kaufer. The visit started off with a tour to ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) followed by different support facilities of the observatory. 

Xavier Barcons said: “Chile has been a partner and host state to ESO for nearly 60 years, and we are very honoured to welcome Chile’s Science Minister to ESO’s facilities in Paranal. This is an opportunity to explore ways to strengthen international collaboration for the benefit of the Chilean science community and of ESO.”

“Astronomy is a highly developed area. Our country has a concentration of very important astronomical instruments—perhaps the largest in the southern hemisphere—and a strong critical mass of researchers that we want to articulate and extend. For this, a key element is the internationalisation of science because we have international centres of great global interest. We will continue promoting their articulation, organisation and financing of new talent in these areas,” said the Chilean Science Minister Flavio Salazar during his visit.

This close collaborative relation between ESO and Chile has allowed the organisation to operate at the unique observational sites in Chile and boosted the growth of the Chilean astronomical community through the decades. 

The Science Minister Flavio Salazar also visited Cerro Armazones, about 20 kilometres from Paranal, where constructions of ESO’s upcoming Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) are advancing. Planned to achieve first light by the end of this decade, the ELT will be the world’s biggest eye on the sky, exploring the Universe in never-before-seen detail. 

ESO representative Luis Chavarria said: “The Minister’s visit is an important milestone and an opportunity to share our visions on the challenge of operating an infrastructure such as the ELT in a sustainable way. Making the best use of the natural lab of northern Chile’s exceptional skies requires coordination with different institutions at national and regional level.”

Courtesy of European Southern Observatory