The first images of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory are presented
2025/06/23 Galarraga Aiestaran, Ana - Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria
The Dust of the Stars, Trifida and Lake Nebulae appear in Vera C. In the first image shown by the Rubin Observatory. In the preconception of the social integration of the first results of the observatory, other images have also been presented, all as surprising as this one, for their resolution, and for revealing details that were not known.
With this, Vera C. launches a ten-year mission. The Rubin Observatory. The observatory is named after the astronomer who proposed the dark matter hypothesis and, in fact, one of its main objectives is to clarify the quality of dark matter. It also seeks to answer questions about how the solar system was created, the objects and structures of the Milky Way, for which it has been equipped with the largest astronomical camera of all time. It has been built in Chile, on Cerro Pachón, at an altitude of 2,682 meters. From there, the camera will take a time-lapse of the southern sky. It has an impressive resolution (3.2 billion pixels), an 8.4-metre mirror, fast turnability, and a powerful computing infrastructure.
It is explained that every three nights, the visible sky of the southern hemisphere will be captured in images and the same operation will be carried out year after year. The computers will compare the images to detect even the most subtle changes: new objects in the solar system, supernovas, for example, in the first images they have already detected thousands of asteroids that they did not know.
The creation of the observatory has involved researchers from more than 30 countries. The LSST was founded by the not-for-profit astronomical corporation and receives financial support from the American Science Foundation (NSF) and other official institutions, among others. So, in a way, it depends on the US government, which has already suffered the decisions of the Trump administration.
In fact, the website of the observatory shows Rubin’s biography. Those responsible for the website highlighted not only their scientific achievements, but also their work in paving the way for women astronomers. However, the Trump administration has decided to eliminate everything in favor of diversity, equity and inclusiveness, so references to Rubin’s work for equality have disappeared from the observatory’s website.
Apart from this, astronomers have enthusiastically taken the first images received by the observatory in honor of Rubin, and there is no doubt that they will extract valuable information from them to better understand the solar system and to deepen the cosmology.
