US-ELTP Thirty Meter Telescope Site Render

A map of the proposed US-ELTP Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) site near the summit of Maunakea in Hawaiʻi. In 2009, this site emerged as the preferred site for TMT. However, access has been halted by TMT opponents at several occasions since 2014. As a result, while Maunakea continues to be TMT International Observatory's (TIO) preferred site, TMT has also extensively investigated several alternative sites to ensure that construction can begin in a timely fashion. On October 31st, 2016, the TIO Board of Directors selected the Observatorio del Roque de Los Muchachos (ORM), in La Palma, on the Canary Islands (Spain) as the alternate site for TMT.