Groundbreaking Ceremony Marks the Beginning  of CTAO-South Array Construction in Chile 

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Paranal, Chile, 17 December 2025 — Representatives from the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO), the European Southern Observatory (ESO), and governmental authorities gathered today to celebrate the official groundbreaking of the CTAO’s southern site, CTAO-South. After years of successful site preparations, the event marked the beginning of construction on the telescope foundations, paving the way for … Continued

Small-Sized Telescopes Pass Readiness Review to Proceed to Factory Testing

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On 2–3 December, the CTAO Central Organisation’s Telescope team visited the facilities of the Italian company Dal Ben, located in the Veneto region, to conduct the Test Readiness Review (TRR) for the electromechanical structure of the Small-Sized Telescope (SST). After the CTAO SST Collaboration completed the integration of the first SST telescope at the facility, … Continued

CTAO-US Teams Awarded Nearly $4 Million NSF Grant to Develop Small-Sized Telescope Cameras

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The U.S. teams involved in the development of the CTAO have been awarded a $3.9 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to contribute to building and installing ten cameras for the Small-Sized Telescopes (SSTs). Led by the Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Wisconsin–Madison, the funds will provide light detectors … Continued

Telescope Construction Begins on CTAO-South with Signing of Major Contract 

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On 2 July, a major contract, worth several million Euros, was signed between the CTAO’s hosting partner, ESO (European Southern Observatory), and a consortium of Chilean companies for the construction of roads and telescope foundations for the CTAO’s southern hemisphere array (CTAO-South), which is located near ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile. The contract, signed on … Continued

ESO Technical Analysis Confirms Planned Industrial Complex Will Have Extensive Impact on Paranal Observatory 

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In January, the European Southern Observatory (ESO) publicly raised the alarm about the threat that the industrial megaproject INNA posed to the world’s darkest and clearest skies for astronomy, those of ESO’s Paranal Observatory and the site of the CTAO’s southern hemisphere array (CTAO-South). The project — by AES Andes, a subsidiary of the U.S. … Continued

The CTAO Enters a New Phase of Growth

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Bologna, Italy – On Thursday, 18 April, during the closing session of the CTAO Science Symposium at Teatro Duse in Bologna, the Managing Director of the CTAO, Dr. Stuart McMuldroch, officially announced the Observatory’s new phase of growth. Supported by the 30M Euro endorsement by the CTAO’s governing bodies in September 2023, this new period … Continued

The CTAO Will Double its Staff as Major Infrastructure Development Begins In 2024

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On 6 September 2023, the CTAO’s two governing bodies, the Board of Governmental Representatives (BGR) and the CTAO gGmbH Council, gathered to agree on the significant forthcoming measures to advance the Observatory to its construction phase. During the meeting, both bodies unanimously certified their commitment to the progress of the CTAO, including a foreseen endorsement of up to approximately 30 million euro for 2024. This represents a significant increase in annual funding, which will enable the Observatory to not only move forward with substantial infrastructure development but also to double its workforce.

CTAO Releases the Layout of its Arrays for the Alpha Configuration

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The CTAO released the final layouts that define the geographical position of the elements (telescopes, calibration systems and atmospheric characterization devices) that will compose the two CTAO arrays according to the approved Alpha Configuration. The particular configuration is the result of a thorough optimization process meant to maximize the scientific performance of the two CTAO arrays.