April 14, 2015 - LSST marks a major milestone today, with the traditional First Stone (Primera Piedra) ceremony taking place this afternoon on Cerro Pachón, Chile. While site leveling has already begun, laying of the first stone is a Chilean tradition marking the construction start for a new astronomical observatory. Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, U.S. Ambassador to Chile Michael A. Hammer, NSF Director France Córdova, and Charles Simonyi are among the dignitaries present to mark this start of summit construction.
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| Steve Kahn Speech Transcript Video: 720 | 480 | France Còrdova Speech Transcript Video: 720 | 480 | Michael Hammer Speech Transcript Video: 720 | 480 | Michelle Bachelet Speech Transcript Video: 720 | 480 |
Read more: NSF Press Release 15-036
News Coverage:
El Dia (La Serena): Al 2020 Chile Terdra 70% infraestructure astronomica mundial afirma Bachelet
AZ Daily Star: First Stone Laid for Giant Survey Telescope
Physics.org: LSST Lays First Stone
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Financial support for Rubin Observatory comes from the National Science Foundation (NSF) through Cooperative Agreement No. 1258333, the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science under Contract No. DE-AC02-76SF00515, and private funding raised by the LSST Corporation. The NSF-funded Rubin Observatory Project Office for construction was established as an operating center under management of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA). The DOE-funded effort to build the Rubin Observatory LSST Camera (LSSTCam) is managed by the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC).
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an
independent federal agency created by Congress
in 1950 to promote the progress of science. NSF supports basic research and people to create knowledge that transforms the future.
NSF and DOE will continue to support Rubin Observatory in its Operations phase. They will also provide support for scientific research with LSST data.
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