ELT
Abbreviation with 4 meanings
| Stands for | Extremely Large Telescope |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 4 |
| Categories | Science & Engineering, Technology & Computing, Business & Finance, Transportation & Travel |
ELT has four meanings. The most common are Extremely Large Telescope (astronomy & Space) and Extract, load, transform (data & database); it can also stand for Executive leadership team and Emergency locator transmitter.
Meanings of ELT at a glance
| # | ELT stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Extremely Large Telescope | Science & Engineering › Astronomy & Space |
| 2 | Extract, load, transform | Technology & Computing › Data & Database |
| 3 | Executive leadership team | Business & Finance › Management & Strategy |
| 4 | Emergency locator transmitter | Transportation & Travel › Aviation |
1. Extremely Large Telescope
Science & Engineering · Astronomy & Space Abbreviations
Optical and infrared telescope under construction by the European Southern Observatory on Cerro Armazones in Chile's Atacama Desert. Its 39-meter primary mirror, made of 798 hexagonal segments, will be the largest of any optical telescope, able to image exoplanets and study the first galaxies.
Example: The ELT's adaptive optics will correct atmospheric blurring using a mirror that changes shape a thousand times per second.
ESO adopted the plain name ELT after earlier plans for a 42-meter "European Extremely Large Telescope" (E-ELT) were scaled back. Its dome is about 80 meters tall. Rival giant telescopes include the Giant Magellan Telescope in Chile and the Thirty Meter Telescope proposed for Hawaii.
2. Extract, load, transform
Technology & Computing · Data & Database Abbreviations
A data pipeline approach that loads raw data into a powerful cloud warehouse first and transforms it there with SQL, instead of transforming it beforehand. It suits platforms such as Snowflake, BigQuery and Databricks.
Example: We switched to ELT: Fivetran lands the raw tables and dbt models them inside Snowflake.
Gained popularity in the late 2010s as cheap, scalable cloud compute made in-warehouse transformation practical. Keeping raw data lets analysts rebuild models when business rules change. The so-called modern data stack pairs ingestion services with transformation tools such as dbt.
3. Executive leadership team
Business & Finance · Management & Strategy Abbreviations
Group of top executives, typically the CEO and the heads of major functions, who meet regularly to run the company and make cross-functional decisions. The ELT usually overlaps heavily with the C-suite.
Example: The ELT will decide on the office consolidation at its offsite next week.
Some companies call this group the executive committee (ExCo), senior leadership team (SLT) or management committee. In education, ELT means English language teaching, an unrelated meaning.
4. Emergency locator transmitter
Transportation & Travel · Aviation Abbreviations
Beacon in an aircraft that activates automatically in a crash and transmits a distress signal, on 406 MHz in modern units, to the Cospas-Sarsat satellite system so rescuers can locate the wreckage. Most US general aviation aircraft must carry one.
Example: The ELT went off during a hard landing, so the pilot called the tower to report a false alarm.
Satellites stopped processing the older 121.5 MHz signals in 2009, so only 406 MHz beacons, which send a registered digital ID, are detected from space, though 121.5 MHz still serves for final homing. Pilots are taught to listen on 121.5 MHz after landing to catch accidental activations. In the US, tests are allowed only during the first five minutes after the hour.
Related abbreviations
More astronomy & Space abbreviations
- DM – Dark matter
- DSO – Deep-sky object
- EDL – Entry, descent and landing
- EHT – Event Horizon Telescope
- ESA – European Space Agency
- ESO – European Southern Observatory
- ET – Extraterrestrial
- EVA – Extravehicular activity
See all 83 astronomy & Space abbreviations →