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| | MSN Encarta - Telescope |
 | | Telescopes are the fundamental research instruments that enable astronomers to tackle scientific questions about the birth of the universe ( see Big Bang Theory ; Cosmology); the emergence of structure in the early universe; the formation and evolution of stars, galaxies, and planetary systems; and the conditions for the emergence of life itself. |
 | | In 2001 the European Southern Observatory opened the largest optical interferometer, the Very Large Telescope (VLT), in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile. |
 | | Telescope, device that permits distant and faint objects to be viewed as if they were much brighter and closer to the observer. |
| encarta.msn.com /encyclopedia_761557777/Telescope.html (271 words) |
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