President of Germany visits ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile

The President of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and his delegation have completed a visit to ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Northern Chile, home to some of the most advanced ground-based telescopes in the world. The visit marks the first time a German President has visited ESO’s facilities in Chile. 

Yesterday, President Steinmeier and his delegation were welcomed by ESO’s Director General Xavier Barcons at the Paranal Residencia, before heading for a visit of ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) and its interferometer (VLTI) guided by ESO’s Representative in Chile, Itziar de Gregorio-Monsalvo and the Director of the La Silla–Paranal Observatory, Thomas Klein. 

“It’s an honour to welcome President Steinmeier to ESO’s Paranal Observatory. A founding member state of ESO and the host to our headquarters, Germany has made very significant contributions to ESO over the past decades,” said ESO’s Director General Xavier Barcons. “We are grateful for the country’s unfailing support and look forward to continuing our fruitful collaboration with German industry and R&D institutes.” 

Reinhard Genzel, Director of the Max-Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Germany and a long-time collaborator of ESO, also accompanied the President. Genzel was awarded the Physics Nobel Prize in 2020 for the discovery of the black hole at the centre of our galaxy, with observations conducted for over 30 years with several ESO facilities playing a key role in the finding. Dominika Wylezalek, a professor at the University of Heidelberg and former ESO student and fellow, was also part of the delegation. 

Today, President Steinmeier, Nobel Prize Winner Genzel and other members of the delegation had the opportunity to visit the construction site of ESO’s Extremely Large Telescope (ELT), about 20 km away from Paranal. 

Germany has had a major role in this and many of ESO’s technological and scientific achievements. For example, German company SCHOTT produced mirror blanks for the VLT, as well as the ELT, while several German research institutes have led consortia designing and building instruments for ESO’s telescopes. In his address, President Steinmeier highlighted the country’s ongoing commitment to ESO, the value of international collaboration, and the critical role that Chile and its clear skies play in furthering our view of the Universe. 

“We are proud that Germany was one of the founding states of ESO and proud that German scientists are taking part in this cutting-edge research,” he said in a statement to the media from the Paranal platform. “If this research is to be maintained at this level then this location must also be permanently protected from light emissions from other sources.“

Chile’s Atacama Desert has the darkest and clearest skies on the planet. This unique place, crucial for leading astronomical research, is currently under threat by a massive industrial complex planned for construction only 5 to 11 kilometres from telescopes at Paranal. If not relocated, the light pollution caused by this project will cause irreparable damage to astronomical observations.

Courtesy of European Southern Observatory