ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array) consists of 66 antennas, each 12 meters in diameter, which will capture images of the universe at very high resolution. "With ALMA we are going to analyze the cold universe, the areas that are dark to the human eye," explains William Garnier, in charge of communications for this project, which will be located at an altitude of more than 5000 meters on the Chajnantor Plateau.
"Through the array of antennas we will achieve a unique resolution in the world that will allow us to see the areas where planets and galaxies that are outside the solar system are born," says Garnier.
The best skies
The initiative began to be implemented in 2003 and it is expected that the first observations will be made in 2010 and that the entire complex will be in operation by 2013. It is precisely by synchronizing the antennas, which work at wavelengths from 10 mm (31.3 GHz) to 0.35 mm (950 GHz) and form a gigantic radio telescope, that the areas obscured by interstellar dust, where stars are born, will be seen as never before. This radio telescope will be 30 times more sensitive than all other existing equipment.
There was no doubt about the choice of Chile as the natural setting for the project. "These are the best skies in the world for observation," emphasizes Garnier. The area where the antennas will be located is one of the driest in the world, which ensures clear skies and that the waves arrive as pure as possible. Another factor is the 5,000-meter altitude of the site.
In July, the first antenna, which weighs more than 100 tons, was moved in a shuttle the size of a tennis court to the ALMA operations center, which is located at an altitude of 2,900 meters. But by April 2007, some antennas were already operating at the operations center. Next year, the first antenna is expected to be raised to 5,000 meters.
The construction cost of the ALMA megaproject is US$ 1.4 billion and the initiative is a partnership between Europe, East Asia and North America in cooperation with Chile.