A
21st Century Observatory Exploring the Farthest Reaches
of the Universe.
To explore the Universe further... To comprehend nature
deeper... Such wishes have been the principal motivating
force that has led humankind to its high level of
intellectual activity today. Limitless yearning pushed
our forbearers to travel beyond their horizon, to
navigate the unknown ocean. We descendants have stepped
into space and onto the Moon, and are now reaching
for the universe itself.
With the assistance of the latest technologies, today's
astronomers believe that they are close to seeing
the edge of the observable universe, which will probably
be found about 14 billion light-years from Earth.
Looking back through history, humans have always built
wondrous instruments using the most advanced technologies
of their times to investigate the limits of the observable
universe. Stonehenge in England, considered as
a stone-age observatory; the meticulous Mayan Calendar;
the huge and precise Gnomon in ancient China are all among the top technological achievements of their respective times. Tycho
Brahe's wall quadrant yielded highly accurate data
of planetary positions, resulting in the birth of
modern celestial mechanics soon thereafter. Herschel's
gigantic reflector telescopes led him to recognize
a huge stellar system: the Galaxy. These efforts to look deeper
into the Universe have never been suspended.
Upon accumulating such innovative observational techniques
age after age, we now rejoice in our view of a glorious
Universe: innumerable stars are formed and dispersed,
swirling galaxies crowd together and collide with
each other, and space as a whole is rapidly expanding,
while everything continues to change.
Astronomers built the Subaru Telescope to continue
the exploration, inheriting the dreams of human beings
throughout time. We are observing the formation of
the first generation of galaxies, thus opening up
new pages in the genesis of the Universe. We are investigating
other planetary systems to determine the origins of
life. We endeavor to observe the Universe farther
and wider, to understand the our surroundings more
deeply and correctly, and to identify our reason to
be.
The Best Site: Mauna Kea, Big Island, Hawaii
