E-ELT Telescope Main Structure

The European Extra Large Telescope is ESO's biggest astronomical telescope project. The E-ELT is an active and adaptive telescope. It has an astigmatic optical solution (five mirrors, including two flat ones). The telescope structure is of alt-azimuth type able to support a primary mirror with an equivalent diameter of 40 m. The telescope will be installed in a high-seismicity zone, in Cerro Armazones, Antofagasta Region, Chile, at an altitude of 3046 metres above sea level. This has significantly affected the boundary conditions and safety aspects considered during the project. The scope of the paper describes the Telescope Main Structure configuration developed by Empresarios Agrupados (Spain) during the FEED Studies performed from June 2009 to July 2011 in the frame of ESO Contracts. Most of the solutions implemented were extrapolated from existing installations in which Empresarios Agrupados has participated, adjusting for the extra large size of this new telescope.