Extremely Large Telescope

Industrial success Extremely Large Telescope

2026-10-15 Source: Press release Safran Group 2 min Reading Time

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Safran builds on the industrial success of the Extremely Large Telescope to scale up production of space and defence optical equipment.

A new "Factory 4.0" to make primary mirror segments for the Extremely Large Telescope.(Source: Safran Group) — A new "Factory 4.0" to make primary mirror segments for the Extremely Large Telescope.
(Source: Safran Group)

Safran Reosc, a subsidiary of Safran Electronics & Defence, announces that it will complete, by the end of 2026, the production at its Poitiers site of the 931 segments of the primary mirror (M1) of the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) for the European Southern Observatory (ESO). The company is also producing the telescope's four other mirrors, completing its entire optical system, at its other site in Saint-Pierre-du-Perray (Essonne).

Awarded by ESO in 2017, the contract to produce the ELT's primary mirror is now entering its final phase of execution. Currently being installed in Chile, the ELT will be the largest optical telescope ever designed, 20 times more powerful than the ESO’s Very Large Telescope commissioned in the early 2000s. The contract covered nanometer-scale polishing, mechatronic integration and testing of the 931 hexagonal segments in ZERODUR glass-ceramic, each 1.5 meters in diameter (798 segments forming the 39-meter-diameter mirror, plus 133 exchange segments).

To carry out this program, which required the series production of many optics, Safran Reosc invested €30 million in the modernisation of a dedicated 5,000 m² building, inaugurated in 2020. The full automation of the production line, combining contactless ion beam polishing, digital metrology and RFID-based traceability, formed the core of a unique Industry 4.0 site.

"Producing this primary mirror for astronomy is a source of great pride for our teams. It crowns ten years of innovation and commitment that have transformed historic know-how into an industrial capability able to produce some of the most demanding optics in the world. This achievement, driven by the women and men of our Poitiers and Saint-Pierre-du-Perray sites, provides an outstanding foundation for pursuing our ambitions in the New Space market, particularly in the fields of constellations and sovereign observation satellites." said Aurélie Girou, President of Safran Reosc.

The industrial expertise gained at the Poitiers production unit is becoming a strategic asset for the volume production of space optical instruments for the constellation market (large mirrors, filters, lenses, etc.). Its capabilities and expertise will also help ramp up production of optical instruments used in defence applications, such as the JIM Compact multifunction infrared binoculars or missile seekers.

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Date: 08.12.2025

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