New supersized telescope in Atacama desert could offer view of Earth-like planets

In Chile’s Atacama Desert, the night sky feels infinite. Considered the driest place on Earth, its darkness offers one of the clearest windows to the universe. The exceptional conditions of the Atacama have enabled some of the most ambitious astronomical projects ever conceived, like the Extremely Large Telescope, ELT — a $1.5 billion endeavor by European Southern Observatory scheduled for completion in 2030.