Colloquium: The 100m Effelsberg Radio Telescope: Serving Astronomy for 50 Years

© Drone image by Dominik Ketz

The 100m radio telescope of the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Bonn celebrates its 50th birthday in 2021. The construction of the telescope in an Eifel valley about 40 km southwest of Bonn took place in three and a half years from 1967 to 1971. On May 12, 1971, an official opening was celebrated at the site of the telescope, close to the two Eifel villages of Effelsberg and Lethert, which are now districts of the town of Bad Münstereifel.

Starting from August 1, 1972, the Effelsberg telescope became fully operational. During the following five decades, the instrument underwent continuous technical upgrades, so that it is still one of the most powerful radio telescopes on Earth today. The 100m telescope is still a central part of the scientific work of the institute.

In this talk I will present some of the science highlights that have been obtained over the many years and the technical developments that continuously improved its capabilities.