Overview

• On June 23, the observatory released its first-light views of the Trifid and Lagoon nebulae alongside a detailed segment of the Virgo galaxy cluster.
• Its 8.4-meter mirror and 3.2-gigapixel camera stitched together 678 exposures over seven hours to produce ultra-wide, high-resolution snapshots.
• Initial testing uncovered more than 2,100 previously unknown asteroids, showcasing the telescope’s rapid-scan capabilities for solar-system objects.
• Over the next ten years, the Legacy Survey of Space and Time will image the southern sky every three to four nights, amassing data on about 40 billion stars, galaxies and asteroids.
• Researchers aim to map transient phenomena and use the continuous dataset to probe cosmic mysteries such as dark matter, dark energy and potential Earth-approaching asteroids.