Greenwich Park magnetic observatory

The Greenwich Park magnetic observatory was a scientific station built within Greenwich Park, London, to record the Earth's magnetic variation away from other instruments' interference.

About Greenwich Park magnetic observatory

Founded in 1890, the observatory was designed to house sensitive instruments at a magnetically neutral site and to take regular readings of the difference between magnetic north and true north.

History

Choosing where to place the observatory took Astronomer Royal William Christie five years to decide. Construction of the Altazimuth Pavilion in 1894-95 forced a relocation, and the instruments settled into the Christie Enclosure by 1897. Interference was a persistent concern: as early as 1890, the South London Electric railway, though 4.5 miles away, was found to disturb readings, and by 1893 a parliamentary clause required future railway and tramway bills to protect the magnetic observatories at Greenwich and Kew from electrical interference.

Location & getting there

The site sits within Greenwich Park in London, part of the Europe region Star Register tracks. As a historic installation within a public royal park, the surrounding parkland is open to visitors even where the original scientific buildings are not.

Visiting Greenwich Park magnetic observatory

Greenwich Park itself is freely open to the public; for details on what remains of the magnetic observatory today, check current information from the Royal Parks or the Royal Observatory Greenwich before visiting.

See your named star from here

The careful, precise measurements this observatory once took are a fitting echo of the exact coordinates that come with every star named through Star Register. Browse our packages or explore the catalogue to name a star of your own.