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Beijing University has unveiled plans to build the largest telescope in Asia to close the gap in astronomical development with Western countries, Space.com reports.

A telescope with a mirror diameter of 6 meters is planned to be built by 2024, and by 2030 the mirror will be enlarged to 8 meters. The project is called the Expanding Aperture Segmented Telescope (EAST) and will be similar to the ground-based James Webb Space Telescope.

The telescope will significantly improve China's observational capabilities in optical astronomy, according to a statement from Beijing University. EAST is also expected to be the first world-class optical telescope in the eastern hemisphere. Now all the leading telescopes are located in the Western Hemisphere.

The telescope will be built on Mount Saishiteng near Lenghu City in Qinghai Province on the Tibetan Plateau at an altitude of about 4,200 m. The project is estimated at $69-84 million.

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