The RT-32 radio telescope Ventspils International Radio Astronomy Centre, Irbene, Latvia, August 29, 2021. Photo by D.P.
It is located in woodlands near Irbene, Latvia. The object was founded in 1974 by the Soviet military. It originally consisted of a 32-metre telescope, along with two smaller telescopes and a communications centre, and was known as Zvezdochka, meaning "Little Star". It was possibly used by the KGB during the Cold War to spy on communications between Europe and the United States.
The collapse of the Soviet Union and the expulsion of the Russian army from Latvia prevented significant security risks for Europe.
Former Soviet spy and signals intelligence (SIGINT) centre became a scientific research facility in the 1990s, established on 22 July 1994 as part of the Latvian Academy of Sciences, before becoming an independent organization on 24 April 1996. It is now known as the Ventspils International Radio Astronomy Centre ("Ventspils Starptautiskais radioastronomijas centrs"),or the Irbene Astronomy Center.
Now it is the largest radio telescope in northern Europe and the world’s eighth largest.
