Cutting-edge science, dusty wasteland

ALMA — a state-of-the-art telescope to study light from some of the coldest objects in the Universe — operates high on the Chajnantor plateau in the Chilean Andes. ALMA comprises 66 high-precision antennae, each weighing in at over 100 tons. This cutting-edge project is located in an extreme and isolated environment, ideal for observing, but tough for the observers. © M. Struik (CERN/ESO)