Astronomical Observatory of the Jagiellonian University

In Kraków, Poland, the Astronomical Observatory of the Jagiellonian University has watched the sky since 1792, making it one of Europe's older working observatories and a direct link to Poland's royal past.

About the observatory

The observatory belongs to the Jagiellonian University, founded in 1364, and today operates under the name Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Observatory. Its modern facility is based at Fort Skała, roughly 10 kilometres west of Kraków's city centre.

History

Built between 1788 and 1792 by converting a former Czartoryski palace, the observatory was established under the patronage of King Stanisław August Poniatowski. Astronomers there took their first observations, of the Sun's altitude, in October 1791, before the observatory officially opened on 1 May 1792. Over its history the observatory has pursued a wide-ranging research programme covering the positions of the Sun, Moon, and Jupiter's satellites, stellar occultations, the celestial mechanics of the solar system, binary and eclipsing stars, the Moon's rotation and figure, and meteorological observations.

Location & getting there

The observatory's current facility is at Fort Skała, about 10 kilometres west of central Kraków, Poland, while its historic 18th-century building remains in the city itself.

Visiting

Check the observatory's website for current visiting information, since access to the historic building and the modern Fort Skała site may differ.

See your named star from here

More than two centuries of continuous observation make this an evocative place to locate the coordinates of a named star. Find your star's position in the star catalogue ahead of your visit.