Hvar Observatory

High above the rooftops of Hvar Town on Croatia's Hvar island, the Hvar Observatory occupies a hilltop fortress built by Napoleon's army, now dedicated to watching the sun and stars rather than the sea.

About Hvar Observatory

Hvar Observatory is part of the Geodetic school of the University of Zagreb. It sits on a steep hill about 240 metres above sea level, inside the historic Napoleonic fortifications constructed by the French army during the Napoleonic Wars in the early nineteenth century.

History

The observatory was founded in 1972 through a joint effort between the Council for Science of the Socialist Republic of Croatia and the Astronomical Institute of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences in Ondřejov.

Telescopes & research

Research at Hvar centres on solar physics, the photometry of variable Be-class stars, and the study of star clusters and galaxies. A dedicated double telescope handles solar observation: one instrument observes the photosphere with a 217mm aperture and 2450mm focal length, while the other observes the chromosphere through a narrowband filter with a 130mm aperture and 1950mm focal length. Stellar work relies on a 65cm Cassegrain reflector, and since 1997 the observatory has also shared use of a 1m Cassegrain reflector built jointly with Austrian partners.

Location & getting there

The observatory overlooks the town of Hvar on the southwest side of Hvar island in the Adriatic, reached by a climb up to the old fortress grounds that also gives sweeping views over the harbour and surrounding islands.

Visiting Hvar Observatory

As a working research institution, Hvar Observatory's public access can vary. Check the official website or call ahead to confirm current visiting arrangements before making the trip up the hill.

See your named star from here

With a 1m Cassegrain reflector trained on stars and clusters, Hvar Observatory works with exactly the kind of precise coordinates that come with a named star. Name a star with Star Register to get its right ascension and declination, then see how researchers here use similar data to study the sky. Browse the full catalogue of named stars.