Piszkéstető Station

Piszkéstető Station sits high in Hungary's Mátra Mountains, about 80 kilometres northeast of Budapest, where it has served as a working station of Konkoly Observatory since 1958.

About Piszkéstető Station

Located in Mátraszentimre, the station is operated as an outpost of Konkoly Observatory and carries two observatory codes, 461 for use by Szeged University and 561 for Konkoly Observatory itself, reflecting its shared research role.

History

The station was first built in 1958 and has grown its instrumentation over the decades, including a 60/90/180cm Schmidt telescope added in 1962, a 50cm Cassegrain telescope in 1967, and a 1-metre Ritchey-Chrétien-Cassegrain telescope in 1974.

Telescopes & research

Piszkéstető's telescopes have contributed to real-time asteroid impact detection, helping identify three small asteroids that struck Earth's atmosphere before impact: 2022 EB5, 2023 CX1 and 2024 BX1. The minor planet 37432 Piszkéstető, discovered in 2002, was named in the station's honour.

Location & getting there

The station sits at 944 metres elevation in the Mátra Mountains near Mátraszentimre, Hungary, roughly 80 kilometres from Budapest, a mountain setting that supports its research-grade instrumentation.

Visiting Piszkéstető Station

As a working research station operated by HUN-REN CSFK, visiting arrangements are best confirmed through Konkoly Observatory directly before planning a trip.

See your named star from here

A station that has helped catch asteroids before they hit Earth is a striking place to think about the coordinates of a star you've named through Star Register. Check its position in the star catalogue.