14 DAY TRIAL // The European Southern Observatory (ESO) has just released its second image from the Ultra High Definition Expedition series, showcasing a beautiful shooting star falling over the site of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). The observatory is located 5 kilometers (3 miles) above sea level, on the Chajnantor Plateau in the Andes Mountains, Chile.
The first Ultra HD image was taken a couple of weeks ago at the site of the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT), at Cerro Paranal Observatory in the Chilean Andes. The photo showcased the core of the Milky Way, as well as Large and Small Magellanic Clouds and important stars, such as Antares and Vega.
The four ESO Photo Ambassadors responsible for collecting this series of images then left the VLT and headed for ALMA. Their 17-day trip will conclude after they collect four of these great images, from each main ESO installation in Chile. The second image was collected at ALMA, where work is still ongoing to complete the world's most advanced radio observatory.
Only 20 to 25 of ALMA's 66 antennas are visible in this image. Also included in this view are our neighboring planet, Mars, and the brightest star in the constellation of Virgo, Spica. Both objects are just rising from beyond the horizon, just above the antennas at the center of the photo. Mars is obviously the red sphere, while Spica appears in bluish hues.