Thirty Meter Telescope is a new class of extremely large telescopes that will allow us to see deeper into space and observe cosmic objects with unprecedented sensitivity. It is getting built at Mauna Kea, Hawaii, USA.
With its 30 m prime mirror diameter, TMT will be three times as wide, with nine times more area than the largest currently existing visible-light telescope in the world.
This will provide unparalleled resolution with TMT images more than 12 times sharper than those from the Hubble Space Telescope. When operational, TMT will provide new observational opportunities in essentially every field of astronomy and astrophysics.
The TMT International Observatory LLC (TIO), a non-profit organization, was established in May 2014 to carry out the construction and operation phases of the TMT Project.
The partner members of TIO are:
- Caltech, the University of California, US.
- The National Institutes of Natural Sciences of Japan.
- The National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
- The Department of Science and Technology of India.
- National Research Council, Canada.
- The Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, US.