Free Astronomy Magazine September-October 2019

14 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2019 SPACE CHRONICLES La Silla 50 th anniversary culminates with total solar eclipse by ESO A t 16:40 CLT, the Moon covered the face of the Sun, in a total solar eclipse visible from a 150-km-wide swathe of northern Chile, including ESO’s La Silla Observatory, which celebrated half a century of astronomical research this year. ESO, in collaboration with the Government of Chile, organised an outreach campaign that gave people the opportunity to experience this rare phenomenon from La Silla Observatory itself. 1000 visitors had access to the site, including more than 30 high school students and 30 senior citi- zens from La Serena, La Higuera and Coquimbo, the districts neighbouring the Observatory. Another group of students came to La Silla from all over Chile. The youngsters were selected through a contest organised in collaboration with