Construction has begun on a next-generation telescope, dubbed MOTHRA, that is designed to reveal the cosmic web – a largely unknown network of gas and dark matter that connects galaxies across the universe.
MOTHRA is a distributed-aperture telescope composed of 1,140 high-end Canon telephoto lenses, which together synthesise the power of a single giant telescope. This design has grown out of the Dragonfly Telephoto Array concept which initially demonstrated the capability to find and study extremely faint, extended structures.
Dark matter is still little understood by scientists but appears to make up most of the matter in the universe. Astronomers know it exists because of the way its gravity affects galaxies and the movement of stars. By studying it, scientists hope to explain how galaxies form, how the universe is structured, and why it behaves the way it does.
“MOTHRA is a telescope designed around a single idea: maximise discovery space for the dim glow of intergalactic gas,” said...