HARPS Laser Frequency Comb Commissioned

June 1, 2015

New step towards finding other Earths.

The HARPS laser frequency comb provided by Menlo Systems is now installed on the HARPS planet-finding instrument on the ESO 3.6-metre telescope at the La Silla Observatory in Chile and has completed an intense first commissioning phase. The increase in accuracy made possible by this new installation should in future allow HARPS to be able to detect Earth-mass planets in Earth-like orbits around other stars for the first time.

For further reading please check the ESO press release.