VLT Survey Telescope, Large survey telescope at Paranal Observatory, Chile

The VLT Survey Telescope is a research telescope measuring 2.65 meters in diameter located at Paranal Observatory in the Atacama Desert at 2635 meters elevation. It uses the OmegaCAM system with 32 CCD detectors that simultaneously capture 268-megapixel images and survey large areas of the sky.

The telescope was built between 2007 and 2011 and experienced a setback when the first mirror was damaged during transport from Europe to Chile. It was developed as a European-Italian collaboration to advance astronomical research and observation.

The VST programme began in 1997 as a cooperation between ESO and the Osservatorio Astronomico di Capodimonte in Naples, part of INAF. INAF set up a dedicated institute, Centro VST a Napoli, founded and directed by Prof. Massimo Capaccioli and hosted at the OAC. ESO handled civil engineering and the dome, and now runs the telescope alone.

The VST sits on the summit of Cerro Paranal next to the four VLT Unit Telescopes, in a building ESO erected and maintains; the site is run as a working observatory, not a public attraction, so access is arranged through ESO rather than by independent visits. The altitude and desert setting mean cold nights and strong sun by day.

The field of view spans roughly twice the width of the full moon, allowing large sections of the sky to be captured in a single exposure. This makes it particularly valuable for systematic sky surveys and discovering objects across vast celestial regions.