The Neil Armstrong Observatory was completed March 1, 2014, making
Nicaragua the only country in Latin America with an astronomical observatory reserved for use by scholars. The observatory, which cost half a million U.S. dollars to build, is located at the Pierre and Marie Curie School in
Managua.
The building consists of two floors plus a dome of more than 4.5 square meters. The telescope's main lens is 11 inches across and can magnify stellar objects by 50 to 800 times. The first floor is a chemistry lab named for
Irene Joliot-Curie. The second floor, dedicated to the study of physics, is named for
Isaac Newton. The observatory is named
Neil Armstrong
Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aeronautical engineer who became the first person to walk on the Moon in 1969. He was also a naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor.
...
in honor of the first man to touch the Moon, during the
Apollo 11 mission in 1969.
References
Astronomical observatories
Buildings and structures in Nicaragua
2014 establishments in Nicaragua
Neil Armstrong
{{observatory-stub