Höfingen observatory

In Leonberg-Höfingen, part of the Stuttgart metropolitan area in Germany, a small team of volunteer astronomers keeps the Höfingen observatory open to the public most Friday evenings when the sky is clear.

About Höfingen observatory

The observatory is maintained by the Höfinger Heimat- und Kulturverein e.V., a local heritage and culture association, with around 12 active volunteers keeping it running. It sits at an elevation of about 417 metres.

History

The observatory is understood to have been founded around 1970, and in 2024 it added a new wooden observatory building fitted with a parallactic mount for astrophotography.

Telescopes & research

Equipment on site includes a 16-inch Ritchey-Chrétien reflecting telescope, a 5-inch refracting telescope, two 8-inch Dobsonian reflecting telescopes, and an H-alpha telescope for solar observation.

Location & getting there

Höfingen observatory is located in Leonberg-Höfingen, within the Stuttgart metropolitan area of Germany, at around 417 metres above sea level.

Visiting Höfingen observatory

Public star tours run on Friday evenings after dark whenever the sky is clear, and solar observations are offered on the first Sunday of each month from 2pm to 4pm, conditions permitting. Check the official website before visiting to confirm the schedule.

See your named star from here

With a 16-inch Ritchey-Chrétien telescope and a dedicated astrophotography mount, the volunteers at Höfingen have the equipment to seek out precise points in the sky, exactly the kind of coordinates a named star comes with. Name a star with Star Register and bring its right ascension and declination along to a Friday star tour. See more named stars in our catalogue.