The Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile has begun a new scientific phase, which is one of the largest sky survey projects in the history of astronomy, by operating the world’s largest digital camera as part of a mission that will span about ten years to create an accurate and comprehensive map of the night sky in the southern hemisphere.

This huge camera is located on the peak of Cerro Pachón in the Andes Mountains; it is similar in size to a small car, weighing around 3000 kilograms. During each observation night, it will capture between 700 and 800 high-resolution images of the sky, producing an unprecedented astronomical archive of data and images over time.

This giant project aims to enable scientists to “cover the entire southern night sky,” according to Phil Marshall, deputy director of operations at the observatory. These data will be used to build a comprehensive and accurate census of objects in the solar system, as well as to monitor cosmic changes over a long time span.

One of the main scientific goals of this project is to observe millions of new asteroids, help search for the so-called “ninth planet,” study the structure of the Milky Way galaxy, and monitor violent cosmic phenomena such as supernovae and black holes. The project also focuses on understanding the nature of **dark matter** and **dark energy**, which are two of the biggest mysteries in modern cosmology.

The observatory is named after American astronomer Vera Rubin, whose research played a pivotal role in providing the first strong evidence for dark matter, a discovery that changed scientists’ understanding of the universe's structure.

Earlier, the observatory published some of its initial test images, which showed stunning scenes such as the Lake Nebula thousands of light years away, indicating its immense capabilities before full scientific operation, according to "euronews" website.

This project is seen as a large-scale international scientific collaboration that reflects the power of joint work between multiple research institutions around the world. It is expected to make a significant leap in our understanding of the universe over the next decade through this unprecedented survey of the sky.