The Spanish National Observatory ( es, Observatorio Astronómico Nacional de España, OAN) is an
astronomical observatory with several facilities in the
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
area.
The Observatory has published a
yearbook
A yearbook, also known as an annual, is a type of a book published annually. One use is to record, highlight, and commemorate the past year of a school. The term also refers to a book of statistics or facts published annually. A yearbook often ...
(the ''Anuario del Observatorio Astronómico de Madrid'') since the 19th century.
Royal Observatory
The seat of the National Observatory is the Royal Observatory ( es, Real Observatorio Astronómico de Madrid) in the
Parque del Buen Retiro
The Buen Retiro Park (Spanish: ''Parque del Buen Retiro'', literally "Good retirement park"), Retiro Park or simply El Retiro is one of the largest parks of the city of Madrid, Spain. The park belonged to the Spanish Monarchy until the late 19th ...
.
This historic observatory was built in 1790. Equipped with a Herschel telescope, it took over the purely astronomical work of the naval observatory, the ''
Real Instituto y Observatorio de la Armada
The Real Instituto y Observatorio de la Armada (Royal Institute and Observatory of the Spanish Navy) is the scientific institute and astronomical observatory of the Spanish Navy (''Armada''), located in San Fernando in the Province of Cádiz, ...
'', in the south of the country.
The building was designed by
Juan de Villanueva
Juan de Villanueva (September 15, 1739 in Madrid – August 22, 1811) was a Spanish architect. Alongside Ventura Rodríguez, Villanueva is the best known architect of Spanish Neoclassicism.
Biography
His father was the sculptor Juan de Vill ...
and represents one of the highlights of Spanish
neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...
. Its domed lantern was conceived as a classical circular temple.
The Observatory houses historic scientific equipment and can be visited by prior arrangement. There is also a library.
Yebes Observatory
Yebes Observatory is a modern facility north-east of Madrid. It is in a rural location near
Guadalajara.
See also
*
Yebes Observatory RT40m
The Yebes Observatory RT40m, or ARIESXXI, is a radio telescope which is part of the observatory at Yebes, Spain.
It is a 40-metre Cassegrain–Nasmyth telescope.
Location
The telescope is located at Yebes Observatory (Spanish: ''Centro Astro ...
References
External links
National Observatory
{{Authority control
Astronomical observatories in Spain
Buildings and structures in Jerónimos neighborhood, Madrid
1790 establishments in Spain