Mountaintop Blast for Giant Magellan Telescope; Video Available

The detonation of a mountain peak at Las Campanas Observatory in Chile today initiated site preparation for the construction of the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT). The blasting will create a level foundation for the construction of the telescope.

The event was streamed live online courtesy of the US Embassy in Chile, and the video now is available at the Carnegie Institution's YouTube channel.

The Giant Magellan Telescope will be the world’s largest telescope and promises to revolutionize scientists’ view and understanding of the universe.  It will be built collaboratively by The University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, Carnegie Institution for Science, Smithsonian Institution, Harvard University, The University of Arizona, The University of Chicago, Astronomy Australia Ltd., The Australian National University, and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute

 More information about GMT is available at http://www.gmto.org.