Transporting the 115 tonne antennas from the Operations Support Facility at 2900 m altitude to the site at 5000 m, 
or moving antennas around the site to change the array size, presents enormous challenges; as portrayed in the television documentary Monster Moves: Mountain Mission.
The solution chosen is to use two custom 28-wheel self-loading heavy haulers.
The vehicles were made by Scheuerle Fahrzeugfabrik in Germany and are 10 m wide, 20 m long and 6 m high, weighing 130 tonnes.
They are powered by twin turbocharged 500 kW Diesel engines.

The transporters, which feature a driver's seat designed to accommodate an oxygen tank to aid breathing the thin high-altitude air, place the antennas precisely on the pads.
The first vehicle was completed and tested in July 2007.
Both transporters were delivered to the ALMA Operations Support Facility (OSF) in Chile on 15 February 2008.

On 7 July 2008, an ALMA transporter moved an antenna for the first time, from inside the antenna assembly building (Site Erection Facility) to a pad outside the building for testing (holographic surface measurements).

During Autumn 2009, the first three antennas were transported one-by-one to the Array Operations Site.
At the end of 2009, a team of ALMA astronomers and engineers successfully linked three antennas at the 5,000-metre (16,000 ft) elevation observing site thus finishing the first stage of assembly and integration of the fledgling array.
Linking three antennas allows corrections of errors that can arise when only two antennas are used, thus paving the way for precise, high-resolution imaging.
With this key step, commissioning of the instrument began 22 January 2010.

On 28 July 2011, the first European antenna for ALMA arrived at the Chajnantor plateau, 5,000 meters above sea level, to join 15 antennas already in place from the other international partners.
This was the number of antennas specified for ALMA to begin its first science observations, and was therefore an important milestone for the project.
In October 2012, 43 of the 66 antennas had been set up.
Transporting the 115 tonne antennas from the Operations Support Facility at 2900 m altitude to the site at 5000 m, 
or moving antennas around the site to change the array size, presents enormous challenges; as portrayed in the television documentary Monster Moves: Mountain Mission. The solution chosen is to use two custom 28-wheel self-loading heavy haulers. The vehicles were made by Scheuerle Fahrzeugfabrik in Germany and are 10 m wide, 20 m long and 6 m high, weighing 130 tonnes. They are powered by twin turbocharged 500 kW Diesel engines.
The transporters, which feature a driver's seat designed to accommodate an oxygen tank to aid breathing the thin high-altitude air, place the antennas precisely on the pads. The first vehicle was completed and tested in July 2007. Both transporters were delivered to the ALMA Operations Support Facility (OSF) in Chile on 15 February 2008.
On 7 July 2008, an ALMA transporter moved an antenna for the first time, from inside the antenna assembly building (Site Erection Facility) to a pad outside the building for testing (holographic surface measurements).
During Autumn 2009, the first three antennas were transported one-by-one to the Array Operations Site. At the end of 2009, a team of ALMA astronomers and engineers successfully linked three antennas at the 5,000-metre (16,000 ft) elevation observing site thus finishing the first stage of assembly and integration of the fledgling array. Linking three antennas allows corrections of errors that can arise when only two antennas are used, thus paving the way for precise, high-resolution imaging. With this key step, commissioning of the instrument began 22 January 2010.
On 28 July 2011, the first European antenna for ALMA arrived at the Chajnantor plateau, 5,000 meters above sea level, to join 15 antennas already in place from the other international partners. This was the number of antennas specified for ALMA to begin its first science observations, and was therefore an important milestone for the project. In October 2012, 43 of the 66 antennas had been set up.
Atacama Large Millimeter Array