Fredagskollokvium: Claus Madsen: Climbing the Mountain – 50 years ESO

The talk will trace the historical development of ESO as the prime vehicle for reestablishing ground-based European observational astronomy in a leading position. It will discuss the main elements and milestones of this development – the growth in telescope size, enabled by new technologies, ESO's expansion into non-optical wavelengths and the growth in the user community and the supporting countries, all of which have have contributed to creating a new golden age for astronomy.