Free_Astronomy_-_SeptemberOctober_2019

22

SPACE CHRONICLES

by ESO

First 18 ELT primary

mirror blanks arrive

at Safran Reosc

T

he shipping container with the

first 18 ELT primary mirror

blanks was sent from SCHOTT in

Mainz, Germany, on 23 July and ar-

rived at Safran Reosc the following

day. [ESO/SCHOTT/Safran Reosc]

casting the blanks of the mirror seg-

ments, as well as polishing, mounting

and testing them, were signed in

2017 with respectively the German

company SCHOTT and the French

company Safran Reosc, a subsidiary

of Safran Electronics & Defense.

Mirror blanks are packed by six into

a special wooden transport crate and

six of these crates can fit inside a reg-

ular shipping container. Sophisticated

T

he first set of 18 blanks for the

primary mirror of ESO’s Ex-

tremely Large Telescope have

arrived safely at Safran Reosc in

Poitiers, France. The contracts for

chronicles EN_l'Astrofilo 29/08/2019 15:56 Page 22