Vera C. Rubin Observatory

The Simonyi Survey Telescope of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory on Cerro Pachón, Chile, photographed in 2023 as its structure was readied for a full-size replica of its 8.4-meter mirror. This one is built for width rather than depth: it feeds a 3,200-megapixel camera, the largest digital camera ever built, and is designed to sweep the southern sky again and again for a 10-year survey. The observatory unveiled the first images from its full-size camera in June 2025. That preview drew on about ten hours of test observations.