Wednesday, February 22, 2006
CNN.com - Mexicans leery of giant U.S. telescope - Feb 21, 2006
CNN.com - Mexicans leery of giant U.S. telescope - Feb 21, 2006: "The gleaming white structure, which looks like a gigantic satellite dish, springs out of volcanic rocks on the freezing-cold summit of the 15,000-foot-high Sierra Negra.
Located in the central state of Puebla, Sierra Negra is one of six Mexican volcanos that are higher than any peaks in the continental United States.
Working above cloud level, the telescope will pick up millimeter-long radio waves that have been traveling through space for nearly 13 billion years. Astronomers will use the information to plot more detailed maps than ever of stars and galaxies as they existed shortly after the Big Bang.
'We will get incredible new insight into how galaxies were first formed,' said project scientist David Hughes of Mexico's National Astrophysics Optics and Electronics Institute. 'Once we start operating, we should be making breakthrough discoveries on an almost daily basis.'" ¶ 1:33 AM
Located in the central state of Puebla, Sierra Negra is one of six Mexican volcanos that are higher than any peaks in the continental United States.
Working above cloud level, the telescope will pick up millimeter-long radio waves that have been traveling through space for nearly 13 billion years. Astronomers will use the information to plot more detailed maps than ever of stars and galaxies as they existed shortly after the Big Bang.
'We will get incredible new insight into how galaxies were first formed,' said project scientist David Hughes of Mexico's National Astrophysics Optics and Electronics Institute. 'Once we start operating, we should be making breakthrough discoveries on an almost daily basis.'" ¶ 1:33 AM