We are building the Giant Magellan Telescope
We are building the largest telescope mount ever manufactured in the United States.
In collaboration with the Giant Magellan Telescope organization, we have officially begun the manufacturing and assembly of the largest telescope mount ever constructed in the United States. This 39-meter-tall precision moving structure, designed in partnership with OHB Digital Connect, will be a key component of the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT), one of the most powerful ground-based telescopes in the world.
Building on our long-standing expertise in large, complex, and high-precision manufacturing, we expanded our production facility by 40,000 square feet to support this ambitious project. The newly equipped space now houses the largest gantry milling machine in the United States, specifically designed for the construction of the GMT mount.
The 2,100-metric-ton mount will support seven of the world’s largest mirrors, along with adaptive optics and advanced scientific instruments. Despite its massive scale, the structure is engineered to glide frictionlessly on a thin film of oil just 50 microns thick, ensuring exceptional stability and precision as it tracks celestial objects billions of light years away.
The fabrication of this mount represents a major milestone in the development of the Giant Magellan Telescope, which is expected to become operational in Chile in the early 2030s. This project highlights our role in advanced precision manufacturing and underscores the contribution of Illinois-based industry to cutting-edge scientific research.
Once completed, the Giant Magellan Telescope will be up to 200 times more powerful than today’s leading telescopes, opening entirely new frontiers in astronomical discovery and deep-space exploration.
Building on our long-standing expertise in large, complex, and high-precision manufacturing, we expanded our production facility by 40,000 square feet to support this ambitious project. The newly equipped space now houses the largest gantry milling machine in the United States, specifically designed for the construction of the GMT mount.
The 2,100-metric-ton mount will support seven of the world’s largest mirrors, along with adaptive optics and advanced scientific instruments. Despite its massive scale, the structure is engineered to glide frictionlessly on a thin film of oil just 50 microns thick, ensuring exceptional stability and precision as it tracks celestial objects billions of light years away.
The fabrication of this mount represents a major milestone in the development of the Giant Magellan Telescope, which is expected to become operational in Chile in the early 2030s. This project highlights our role in advanced precision manufacturing and underscores the contribution of Illinois-based industry to cutting-edge scientific research.
Once completed, the Giant Magellan Telescope will be up to 200 times more powerful than today’s leading telescopes, opening entirely new frontiers in astronomical discovery and deep-space exploration.
