Berthelot Observatory

Berthelot Observatory, in Hunedoara County, Romania, is a remotely operated research station built to track near-Earth asteroids as part of a European space-safety programme.

About Berthelot Observatory

The observatory stands in the village of General Berthelot, on protected land belonging to the Romanian Academy. It began operations in November 2018 and is operated remotely from Bucharest, with an infrastructure designed to eventually host multiple telescopes.

Telescopes & research

Its main instrument is an RC 14.5-inch f/7 telescope with an optical guidance system, mounted on a rapid equatorial mount capable of slewing at 8° per second, alongside an all-sky camera. The observatory contributes to the European Union's Space Surveillance and Tracking (EU-SST) programme, carrying out astrometry to refine near-Earth asteroid orbits, photometry of asteroids, cometary imaging and the recording of other astronomical events. Site studies from 2020 recorded roughly 209 clear nights per year, an average seeing of 3.8 arcseconds, and a limiting magnitude of 18 at a signal-to-noise ratio of 10 — figures that mark it as a genuinely productive observing site rather than a symbolic one.

Location & getting there

The observatory is located near General Berthelot village in Hunedoara County, in the Transylvania region of Romania, near 45.617°N, 22.889°E, part of Europe in Star Register's observatories directory. Its protected, rural site was specifically chosen for dark, stable skies.

Visiting Berthelot Observatory

As a remotely operated scientific station run for the Romanian Academy rather than a visitor attraction, it does not have a published public tour programme. Anyone hoping to visit should contact the Romanian Academy directly for current access arrangements.

See your named star from here

The same kind of precise astrometry that Berthelot Observatory performs on asteroids is what makes it possible to locate a named star by its coordinates. Name a star with Star Register, or browse the catalogue of stars already registered.