former observatory of Brussels

The former observatory of Brussels was the original home of what is now the Royal Observatory of Belgium, established in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, Brussels.

About the Observatory

The observatory was founded in 1826 by King William I of the Netherlands, with astronomer Adolphe Quetelet directing its establishment. In the first half of the 20th century, it housed a 100-centimetre (39-inch) diameter Zeiss reflector, one of the largest telescopes in the world at the time.

History

In 1890, the observatory's operations relocated to the Uccle municipality of Brussels, where the institution continues today as the Royal Observatory of Belgium, part of BELSPO, the Belgian Federal Science Policy Office. The associated Brussels Planetarium, named Alberteum Aedes Scientiae, was established in 1935 and closed in 1966; its replacement was built between 1971 and 1973 and inaugurated on 28 September 1976.

Location & getting there

The original observatory site was in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, one of the nineteen municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region in Belgium, before its successor institution moved to Uccle in 1890.

Visiting

The historic Saint-Josse-ten-Noode site is no longer an active observatory; visitors interested in the institution's current work should look to the Royal Observatory of Belgium in Uccle.

See your named star from here

This is the site where Belgium's astronomical tradition began, once home to one of the world's largest telescopes. The same sky it once studied still holds the fixed coordinates of any named star. Browse the star catalogue to explore more.