The Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile has released its first observation image.
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory unveiled its first image captured by a 3.2 billion-pixel digital camera on the 23rd (local time). The image released this time was taken during test shots that began in April. The Vera C. Rubin Observatory is a next-generation space telescope built with an investment of $810 million (approximately 1.1 trillion won) by the National Science Foundation.
A total of four images were released this time. First, it is an image observing a part of the Virgo Cluster, which is closest to our galaxy. Another shows the Lagoon Nebula and Trifid Nebula. This region of the Milky Way is dense with ionized hydrogen, where young stars are forming. This image was created by combining 678 images taken for just over seven hours with the Rubin Observatory's Legacy Survey of Space and Time telescope.
In addition, observation images of 2,104 new solar system asteroids discovered by the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and images of variable stars showing changes in brightness were also released.
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory uses an 8-meter wide-field telescope to observe the southern hemisphere sky. The goal is to capture the night sky equivalent to 45 full moons to create a map of the Milky Way and investigate the existence of dark matter. Starting in the second half of this year, it will scan the entire southern sky every 3 to 4 days with six optical filters, capturing visible changes over the 10-year mission period.
Other telescopes, such as the Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope, have exceptional sensitivity to fine details but only capture very small areas of the sky. In contrast, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory can photograph the entire southern hemisphere. The Hubble Space Telescope can only observe 1% of the size of a full moon at one time, and the James Webb Space Telescope also fails to fully capture a single full moon's size.
Brian Stone, the director of the National Science Foundation, noted, "The Rubin Observatory will capture more cosmic information than all optical telescopes have ever obtained." He added that it will explore various cosmic mysteries, including dark matter and dark energy that fills the universe.
Observation images from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory will also be made available to domestic researchers. The Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute has secured data access rights. The domestic principal investigator, Shin Yun-kyung, a senior researcher, said, "Rather than short-term observations that merely capture a moment, we will be able to observe changes occurring in space over a span of more than ten years, allowing us to see cosmic events like a time-lapse film." He added, "Humanity will be able to verify the dynamically changing state of the universe in real-time and investigate its origins."