Sunset over the Cerro Paranal Observatory in the Atacama Desert, Chile. Clouds appear below the horizon covering the coast the Pacific Ocean, only 12 km away from Paranal mountain. At 2,635 metres (8,645 ft) from sea level and at an extremely dry condition, with its dark and transparent sky, Paranal is home to some of the world's leading telescopes. On top is the Very Large Telescope (VLT), operated by the European Southern Observatory (ESO). It is composed of four 8-metre telescopes that are visible on the left. To their right on the neighboring peak is the VISTA infrared telescope. The telephoto image is made from Cerro Armazones, a 3,064 m (10,052 ft) mountain about 20 km away which is the site for the European Extremely Large Telescope (EELT), the 39.3-meter telescope that will be the world's largest optical telescope in 2020s.