Preparing for the centre section

With the centre section now ready to be lifted, the yokes are prepared to receive and support it.

The above image tries to give a sense to the size of the telescope. From the floor, to the top of the yokes is roughly 4 metres high.

Here you can see the yokes and the base box now fitted together. To give you an idea of scale, from the floor to the to altitude (horizontal) axis of where the centre section `sits', is around four metres.

Engineers now need to prepare the top section of the yokes to allow the centre section to be fitted. The hydrostatic bearings, similar to the ones found in the base box, have to be installed and are attached to the platforms located at the top of the yokes.

Three engineers use scafolding to get right to the top of the yokes to fix the hydrostatic bearings in to place ready to receive the centre section.

In the image on the right you can see the engineers using scafolding to allow them to get right to the top of the yokes to prepare these support structures for the centre section.

The structure as it now stands, base box together with the yokes, weighs in at 11 tonnes.