Test-Bed Telescope 2 joins asteroid protection efforts 06 May 2021 Instrument at ESO's La Silla Observatory will survey fast-moving near-Earth objects. On the lookout: TBT2 Efforts to identify and monitor near-Earth objects, including asteroids that could pose a risk of impact, have taken a step forward at Chile's La Silla Observatory. The European Space Agency's Test-Bed Telescope 2 (TBT2), the second of two instruments designed to test hardware and software for a future network of more advanced telescopes, has started operations at the the European Southern Observatory site. TBT2 features a 56-centimeter glass-ceramic primary mirror, a relatively moderate size allowing the telescope to act as a technology demonstrator for important functions such as robotic real-time control and autonomous data processing.