ESO Annual Report 2025 now available

The ESO Annual Report 2025 is now available online, offering an engaging and high-level overview of ESO’s activities from the past year. The report was recently approved by the ESO Council at its June 2026 meeting.

Among the highlights are:

• The latest progress in the construction of ESO’s Extremely Large Telescope (ELT), including the topping out ceremony for the ELT dome.

• A major milestone for the Very Large Telescope (VLT) Interferometer and the GRAVITY+ project, as the VLT’s Unit Telescopes 1, 2 and 3 are equipped with laser guide star units.

• The groundbreaking ceremony for CTAO-South, the southern array of the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory, now under construction at ESO’s Paranal site.

• A selection of the fascinating scientific results published during 2025 using observations from ESO facilities.

• ESO’s ongoing mission to protect dark and quiet skies, as well as how ESO contributes to and engages with society and our communities.

• News from the La Silla Paranal Observatory and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), including forthcoming instruments and upgrades.

• Technology development and R&D that keeps ESO facilities at the forefront of astronomy.

A “What is ESO?” introduction and “ESO’s year in numbers” at the start give an introduction to the organisation at a glance, and the report is illustrated throughout with beautiful astronomical images and photographs of the activities, observatory sites, and people.

This report is available to download for free and printed copies will be available in the ESOshop, free of charge with the exception of shipping costs, in the coming weeks.