Russia deploys Giant Space Telescope in Lake Baikal

Russian scientists have launched one of the biggest underwater space telescopes of the world on March 13, 2021. This underwater space telescope was deployed deep into universe from pristine waters of Lake Baikal.

About Deep Underwater Telescope

The deep underwater telescope was under construction since the year 2015. The telescope has been designed to observe the smallest known particles called neutrinos. The telescope has been named as “Baikal-GVD”. It was submerged to the depth of 750-1300 meters across the four kilometres from the shore of Lake Baikal. The floating observatory comprises of strings along with the spherical glass and the attached stainless-steel modules.

Purpose of the telescope

The Baikal telescope will rival Ice Cube which is a giant neutrino observatory under the Antarctic ice at the US research station located at the South Pole.

Lake Baikal

It is a rift lake located in the southern Siberia, Russia. The lake is located between the Irkutsk Oblast in the northwest and Buryat Republic in the southeast. It is the largest freshwater lake by volume across the world. It comprises of 22 to 23% of the fresh surface water of World. The lake comprises of more water than all the North American Great Lakes combined. The lake is also the World’s deepest lake with the maximum depth of 1,642 m. It is also the oldest lake of the world. With respect to the surface area, it is the seventh-largest lake across the world. The lake is home to several species of plants and animals. The region located to the east of Lake Baikal is also called as the Transbaikalia or Transbaikal. Lake Baikal has been designated as the World Heritage Site by UNESCO in the year 1996.

Month: Current Affairs - March, 2021