The year 2024 marks the 20th anniversary of the dedication of the Large Binocular Telescope. With its two mirrors on a common mount, yielding light collecting area equivalent to a single 11.8m-diameter aperture and resolution provided by a 22.8m edge-to-edge baseline, the LBT remains one of the most powerful optical/infrared telescopes in the world. The LBT has been a leader in advancing observational technology reflected in telescope design, adaptive optics capability, and instrumentation. With these attributes, the LBT is advancing the frontiers of scientific knowledge in areas including supernovae, galaxy evolution, extrasolar planets, and more.

To mark the two-decade anniversary, the Large Binocular Telescope Observatory hosted a half-day event on April 13, 2024, to celebrate and discuss the telescope’s impact on innovation and discovery – past, present, and future.

A highlight of the celebration was a display of photographs by photographer Renato Cerisola entitled, LBT: Twenty years of dedication and passion. The images, obtained during a multi-day visit to Mt. Graham and Tucson in December 2023, capture both the dedication of the talented LBTO staff and the remarkable technology they support, in enabling the telescope and our researchers to advance the Observatory’s mission.