With the delivery, installation, acceptance testing, and final administrative milestones now completed, AMOS has officially brought this flagship project to a close.

Liège, Belgium – 7 May 2026 – AMOS, a Belgian leader in the design and manufacturing of advanced optical and mechanical systems for astronomy, space and science, announces the successful closure of its contract mission for the Doğu Anadolu Gözlemevi/Eastern Anatolia Observatory (DAG) 4-meter Telescope (DAG400 Telescope) established within the Türkiye National Observatories in Erzurum, Türkiye.

This mission represents a major achievement for AMOS: the design, manufacturing, and integration of the largest and the first infrared telescope ever deployed in Türkiye. Installed at 3,170 meters altitude on Karakaya summit in Eastern Anatolia, the 4-meter-class telescope marks a significant leap forward for astronomical infrastructure in the region and strengthens AMOS’s reputation for delivering world-class observatories.

• The DAG400 Telescope, a 4-meter-class Ritchey-Chrétien instrument with a 56-meter focal length, will explore the universe in visible and infrared wavelengths. Designed as a versatile scientific tool, it will support research from cosmology and galaxy evolution to exoplanets, stellar formation, and minor bodies of the solar system. Its strategic location in Eastern Anatolia of Türkiye — at a longitude with few other observatories — strengthens global sky coverage. This continuous monitoring capability is particularly crucial for observing transient astronomical events and ensures the facility acts as a powerful complement to other leading observatories in the northern hemisphere.

• Equipped with two selectable Nasmyth foci, one for seeing-limited quality and the other with adaptive optics for diffraction-limited performance, the telescope also integrates cutting-edge technologies, including hexapod-controlled secondary and tertiary mirrors and 66 actuators actively shaping the primary mirror for optimal precision. Following the project initial design and review phases, the telescope’s installation was completed in 2024, meanwhile acceptance tests went on until March 2025. This sequence of milestones leading up to the recent completion of final contractual steps concludes a multi-year effort to a now fully operational telescope.

• The owner of the DAG400 Telescope, Türkiye National Observatories, is nearing completion of the installation and testing of its first-generation focal plane instruments (FPIs for DAG400 Telescope: Derotator – KORAY, Adaptive Optics – TROIA, DAG Telescope Simulator – DAGOS, NIR Camera – DIRAC, and Coronagraph – PLACID). Some of these FPIs were completely designed and manufactured within the Türkiye National Observatories. The DAG400 Telescope has successfully received its first light for testing purposes with AMOS and is counting down the days to receive its scientific clearance with this first-generation focal plane instrument.

“Türkiye National Observatories and AMOS completed successfully this project with excellent collaboration in the production and installation processes of the DAG400 Telescope,” declares Cahit Yesilyaprak, Director of Turkiye National Observatories. “The Türkiye National Observatories look forward to continuing to work with AMOS on the production of different focal plane instruments for the DAG400 Telescope, as well as on other future telescope projects.”

“This project marks the largest telescope AMOS has ever delivered as a turnkey system. Its successful closure demonstrates one of the three key pillars of AMOS’s expertise: pioneering astronomical innovation, alongside high-end optical instrumentation for aerospace, and unmatched industrial know-how” says Arnaud Dartevelle, Managing Director of AMOS. He further adds that “the multidisciplinary teams have demonstrated an outstanding level of dedication and commitment, enabling us to deliver and close the manufacturing and installation mission of a world-class telescope that is now ready to open new frontiers in the exploration of the universe.”

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