Volcanos Beware: Muchachos observatory

The observatory is located on the Canary Island of Palma at the peak of the extinct volcano Muchachos at an altitude of about 2400 m above sea level. Along with the observatory in Chile, this observatory is one of the best places on Earth in terms of astroclimate. In 2007, the Great Canary Telescope was commissioned – an optical reflector telescope with the largest mirror in the world. Its primary hexagonal mirror, with an equivalent diameter of 10.4 meters, is composed of 36 hexagonal segments. The telescope is equipped with active and adaptive optics and is capable of seeing objects a billion times fainter in light than those visible to the naked eye.