Mount Terskol Observatory

Mount Terskol Observatory sits high in the Northern Caucasus, in the Kabardino-Balkaria region of Russia near the border with Georgia, at an elevation of roughly 3,127 metres.

About Mount Terskol Observatory

The observatory's exceptionally thin, dry atmosphere gives it low water vapour and high transparency in the ultraviolet and infrared, qualities that have made it one of the best observing sites in Europe. Its main instrument is a 2-metre RCC telescope fitted with a UBVRI CCD-based photometric complex.

History

The site was equipped between 1970 and 1991 by the Main Astronomical Observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Since 1992 it has served as the base for the International Center for Astronomical, Medical and Ecological Research (ICAMER), also run by the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, and in 2005 the Terskol Branch of the Institute of Astronomy of the Russian Academy of Sciences (TB INASAN) was created there as well.

Telescopes & research

The observatory's 2-metre RCC telescope, paired with its photometric imaging complex, takes full advantage of the site's rare atmospheric clarity for optical and infrared astronomy.

Location & getting there

At over 3,100 metres in the Northern Caucasus mountains, Mount Terskol is a genuinely high-altitude site, reached through the surrounding peaks near the Georgian border in Kabardino-Balkaria.

Visiting Mount Terskol Observatory

Given its altitude and role as an active international research station, visitors should check with ICAMER or the Terskol facility directly for current access arrangements before planning a trip.

See your named star from here

Few sites in Europe offer skies as clear as Terskol's, making it an ideal spot, in principle, to point a telescope at the exact coordinates of a symbolically named star. Name a star or browse the star catalogue.