1992 ⟶ Keck Telescope Completed
The 10-meter Keck telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, is complet...
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1992
🔭 Construction of a Large Reflecting Telescope
Irish astronomer William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse completes the first of the world's great telescopes, with a 180-cm mirror. He uses it to study and draw the structure of nebulas, and within a few months discovers the spiral structure of the Whirlpool Galaxy.⟶
AstronomyTelescopeWilliam ParsonsObservational Astronomy19th CenturyNebulaeWhirlpool Galaxy
Ireland🔭 Completion of the Palomar Observatory's 200-inch telescope
The largest telescope in the world, with a 5.08m (200 in) mirror, is completed at Palomar Mountain in California. At the time, the telescope pushes single-mirror telescope technology to its limits – large mirrors tend to bend under their own weight.⟶
AstronomyTelescopePalomar ObservatoryOptical AstronomyAstrophysicsObservational ScienceTechnological AdvancementLarge Telescopes
USA🔭 Hubble Space Telescope Launched and Initial Difficulties
The Hubble Space Telescope, the first large optical telescope in orbit, is launched using the Space Shuttle, but astronomers soon discovered that it is crippled by a problem with its mirror. A complex repair mission in 1993 allows the telescope to start producing spectacular images of distant stars, nebulae, and galaxies.⟶
AstronomySpace TelescopeHubble Space TelescopeSpace ExplorationOptical AstronomyNASA1990sCosmologyAstrophysicsEngineering
United States🔭 Keck Telescope Completed
The 10-meter Keck telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, is completed. The first revolutionary new wave of telescopes, the Keck's main mirror is made of 36 six-sided segments, with computers to control their alignment. New optical telescopes also make use of interferometry – improving resolution by combining images from separate telescopes.⟶
AstronomyTelescopeOptical AstronomyKeck TelescopeMauna KeaInterferometry