The Quito Astronomical Observatory () is a

research institute A research institute, research centre, or research organization is an establishment founded for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research. Although the term often implies natural ...

of EPN, the National Polytechnic School in

Quito Quito (; ), officially San Francisco de Quito, is the capital city, capital and second-largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its metropolitan area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha Province, P ...

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

. Its major research fields are

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

and atmospheric physics. The Quito Astronomical Observatory is one of the oldest

observatories An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysics, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. Th ...

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

and was founded in 1873. In 1963, The Government of Ecuador transferred title of the Observatory to the National Polytechnic School. The Quito Astronomical Observatory is the National Observatory of Ecuador and is located 12 minutes south of the

Equator The equator is the circle of latitude that divides Earth into the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Southern Hemisphere, Southern Hemispheres of Earth, hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, about in circumferen ...

in the Historic Center of Quito.

History

The Quito Astronomical Observatory was founded in 1873. The first director was Juan Bautista Menten, who directed and planned the construction of the center, modeled on the Observatory of

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

(Germany). The building was finished in 1878. Contained within it is one of the most important collections of nineteenth-century

scientific instrument A scientific instrument is a device or tool used for scientific purposes, including the study of both natural phenomena and theoretical research. History Historically, the definition of a scientific instrument has varied, based on usage, laws, an ...

s, featuring a

refracting telescope A refracting telescope (also called a refractor) is a type of optical telescope that uses a lens (optics), lens as its objective (optics), objective to form an image (also referred to a dioptrics, dioptric telescope). The refracting telescope d ...

and a meridian circle manufactured by Repsold. The 24 cm Merz Equatorial Telescope is the most important instrument of the Observatory. It was manufactured in 1875 in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, Germany and is mounted on an

equatorial mount An equatorial mount is a mount for instruments that compensates for Earth's rotation by having one rotational axis, called ''polar axis'', parallel to the Earth's axis of rotation. This type of mount is used for astronomical telescope mount, tel ...

. Ecuador is located in a strategic geographical position where solar-physics studies can be performed year-round, providing data for the scientific community working to understand Sun-Earth interactions. The Quito Astronomical Observatory was completely renovated and fully restored in 2009.

Astronomical Museum

The Museum of the Quito Astronomical Observatory is located in La Alameda park and gives each visitor a vivid history of the various scientific instruments that were used by early astronomers and scientists. The Astronomical Observatory of Quito is one of the oldest in

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

, and is a major attraction for scientists, students and tourists in Ecuador. The Quito Astronomical Observatory has been restored and is open for tourists. Many of the tools were used by the

French Geodesic Mission The French Geodesic Mission to the Equator (), also called the French Geodesic Mission to Peru and the Spanish-French Geodesic Mission, was an 18th-century expedition to what is now Ecuador carried out for the purpose of performing an arc measu ...

II who worked in the facilities of the Center between 1902 and 1914. File:Sala Metereología- Museo OAQ.jpg, Meteorology Room File:Esfera armilar, museo del Observatorio Astronómico de Quito.jpg, 19th century armillary sphere. File:Esfera Galáctica- Museo OAQ.jpg,

Celestial Globe Celestial globes show the apparent positions of the stars in the sky. They omit the Sun, Moon, and planets because the positions of these bodies vary relative to those of the stars, but the ecliptic, along which the Sun moves, is indicated. ...

(1896), by Abelardo Alde. File:Danjon Prismatic Astrolabe (1954), Quito Astronomical Observatory.jpg, Danjon Prismatic Astrolabe (1954), by Optique et Précision de Levallois. File:Telescopio Repsol- Museo OAQ.jpg, Meridian circle (1889), by Repsold & Söhne. File:Quito Astronomical Observatory pic g16a.JPG, Gauthier Chronograph (1913), by P. Gauthier.

Activities and services

Antique Telescope at the Quito Astronomical Observatory 002

The activities and services currently provided by the OAQ are: * Night observations by telescopes * Astronomical information on the equatorial zone * Tour inside the entire Quito Astronomical Observatory. * Basic astronomy courses *

Library A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...

* Operation of the

museum A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...

on the premises * Annual publications * Antique

seismometer A seismometer is an instrument that responds to ground displacement and shaking such as caused by quakes, volcanic eruptions, and explosions. They are usually combined with a timing device and a recording device to form a seismograph. The out ...

References

External links

*
3D view
{{Authority control Astronomical observatories in Ecuador Buildings and structures in Quito Museums in Quito 1873 establishments in Ecuador

History

Astronomical Museum

Activities and services

See also

References

External links