Vice-president of the European Commission visits ALMA

On March 12, Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice President of the European Commission for A Europe Fit for the Digital Age, visited the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) on the Chilean Andes. ALMA is the largest ground-based astronomical project in existence, and is operated by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) together with international partners.

During the visit, Vestager was accompanied Xavier Barcons, ESO Director General, and Luis Chavarría, ESO Representative in Chile. She visited ALMA to learn more about its operations and scientific results. In particular, Vestager was interested in the international nature of the ALMA operations and how the ESO Member States contribute to ALMA’s success and scientific goals.

The ALMA telescope array consists of 66 high-precision antennas located 5000 metres above sea level on the Chajnantor plateau. The antennas work together as a single, massive telescope as large as the separation between the antennas, delivering very detailed images of astronomical objects ranging from nearby planet-forming discs to very distant galaxies.

Courtesy of European Southern Observatory