ESO is the foremost intergovernmental astronomy organisation in Europe and the world's most productive astronomical observatory. It operates three sites in Chile — La Silla, Paranal and Chajnantor — on behalf of its fifteen member states. It builds ALMA together with international partners, and designs the European Extremely Large Telescope.

ESO, the European Southern Observatory, builds and operates a suite of the world's most advanced ground-based astronomical telescopes.

Latest Press Releases


The Flames of Betelgeuse
  
Using the VISIR instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), astronomers have imaged a complex and bright nebula around the supergiant star Betelgeuse in greater detail than ever before. This structure, which resembles flames emanating from the star, is formed as the behemoth sheds its material into space.

Announcements

ESO in your language


Member States: Austria Belgium Brazil Czech Republic Denmark Finland France Germany Italy Netherlands Portugal Spain Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom
Non-Member States: Albania Cyprus Greece Iceland Ireland Norway Poland Turkey Ukraine USA
Host State: Chile
Languages: ČeskyDanskDeutschΕλληνικάEspañolFrançaisÍslenskaItalianoNederlandsNorskPolskiPortuguêsShqipSuomiSvenskaTürkçeукраїнська

Picture of the Week

Hiding in Plain Sight — the elusive Carina Dwarf Galaxy

Top 100 images on iPad


Space Scoop


ESOcast


Virtual Tours


Top 100 Images