Chilean telescopes that explore galaxies brought down to earth by coronavirus

FILE PHOTO: Workers of Atacama Large Millimetre/Submillimetre Array (ALMA) and visitors gather around a special vehicle as it loads a parabolic antenna during the ALMA observatory inauguration, some 140km (87 miles) east of Calama, March 13, 2013. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado

SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Chilean telescopes that comb the skies seeking answers about some of the universe´s most fundamental questions have confirmed they, too, have fallen victim to the mass disruption brought about by the new coronavirus.

Observatories dotted above the coastal city of La Serena and in the Latin nation´s dry northern deserts have closed for the first time since some opened several decades ago, citing the risk of potential contagion among international visitors and scientific staff.