Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory

Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory

CTIO and the Blanco Telescope
Organization	NOAO
Code	807
Location	Coquimbo Region, Chile
Coordinates	30°10′10.78″S 70°48′23.49″W / 30.1696611°S 70.8065250°W / -30.1696611; -70.8065250Coordinates: 30°10′10.78″S 70°48′23.49″W / 30.1696611°S 70.8065250°W / -30.1696611; -70.8065250
Altitude	2,207 metres (7,241 ft)
Established	1962 (1962)
Website	CTIO at NOAO
Telescopes
SOAR Telescope 4.1 m reflector Blanco Telescope 4.0 m reflector SMARTS 1.5-meter 1.5 m reflector SMARTS 1.3-meter 1.3 m reflector SMARTS "Yale" Telescope 1.0 m reflector LCOGTN (u/c) 3× 1.0 m reflectors SMARTS 0.9-meter 0.9 m reflector PROMPT 7 (u/c) 0.8 m reflector Curtis-Schmidt Telescope 0.6 m reflector Wisconsin H-Alpha Mapper 0.6 m telescope SARA South Telescope 0.6 m reflector CHASE telescope 0.5 m reflector PROMPT 6× 0.4 m reflectors GONG solar telescope
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The Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) is an astronomical observatory located on Cerro Tololo in the Coquimbo Region of northern Chile, with additional facilities located on Cerro Pachón about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) to the southeast. It is within the Coquimbo Region and approximately 80 kilometres (50 mi) east of La Serena, where support facilities are located. The site was identified by a team of scientists from Chile and the United States in 1959, and it was selected in 1962. Construction began in 1963 and regular astronomical observations commenced in 1965. Construction of large buildings on Cerro Tololo ended with the completion of the Víctor Blanco Telescope in 1974, but smaller facilities have been built since then. Cerro Pachón is still under development, with two large telescopes inaugurated since 2000, and one in the early stages of construction.

The principal telescopes at CTIO are the 4 m Víctor M. Blanco Telescope, named after Puerto Rican astronomer Victor Manuel Blanco, and the 4.1 m Southern Astrophysical Research (SOAR) telescope, which is situated on Cerro Pachón. Other telescopes on Cerro Tololo include the 1.5 m, 1.3 m, 1.0 m, and 0.9 m telescopes operated by the SMARTS consortium. CTIO also hosts other research projects, such as PROMPT, WHAM, and LCOGTN, providing a platform for access to the southern hemisphere for U.S. and world-wide scientific research.

CTIO is one of two observatories managed by the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), the other being Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) near Tucson, Arizona. NOAO is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), which owns the property around the two peaks in Chile and at the headquarters in La Serena, Chile. AURA also operates the Space Telescope Science Institute and the Gemini Observatory. The 8.1 m (320 in) Gemini South Telescope located on Cerro Pachón is managed by AURA separately from CTIO for an international consortium. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is the funding agency for NOAO.