This image may not be used by or to promote the arms, nuclear power or tobacco industries or any religious organisation, or in any discriminatory way,

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This image may not be used by or to promote the arms, nuclear power or tobacco industries or any religious organisation, or in any discriminatory way, or to imply the endorsement by ESO of any product, service or activity Laser Guide Star Facility at the European Southern Observatory's VLT (Very Large Telescope), Cerro Paranal, Chile. The laser (PARSEC) produces this orange beam to create a guide star in the atmosphere. This facility began operating on 28 January 2006, in the VLT's Yepun telescope (left). By focusing on the artificial guide star, VLT telescopes are calibrated to remove the effects of the atmosphere on observations, a process known as adaptive optics. To the right of the band of the Milky Way are the Large Magellanic Cloud (centre right) and the Small Magellanic Cloud (far right). The brightest star is Sirius, at top above :

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Photo credit: © EUROPEAN SOUTHERN OBSERVATORY/G. HUDEPOHL/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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