Sant Gervasi Observatory

In the Sant Gervasi district of Barcelona, at 415 metres above the city, the building known locally as the Sant Gervasi Observatory is more widely recognised by its historic name, the Fabra Observatory.

About Sant Gervasi Observatory

The observatory was founded in 1904 and formally inaugurated that year in the presence of King Alfonso XIII. It takes its name from Camil Fabra i Fontanills, Marquis of Alella, the industrialist whose donation made the observatory possible. It has been run ever since by the Royal Academy of Sciences and Arts of Barcelona, and its work spans astronomy, meteorology and seismic monitoring.

History

Over more than a century of continuous operation, the observatory has earned recognition including the Narcis Monturiol Plaque from the Government of Catalonia, Barcelona's Gold Medal, and, in 2014, designation as an EPS Historic Site by the European Physical Society.

Telescopes & research

The observatory's centrepiece is a large refracting telescope dating to its 1904 opening, still used today alongside its ongoing meteorological and seismic monitoring programmes.

Location & getting there

Perched at 415 metres in the hills above Barcelona's Sant Gervasi district, the observatory looks out over the city while keeping enough elevation and separation from street-level light to support real observing.

Visiting Sant Gervasi Observatory

The observatory runs public tours that let visitors look directly through its telescope at the Moon, Jupiter, Saturn and Mars, along with occasional dinner-under-the-stars events. Check the observatory's official website for current tour dates and tickets before visiting.

See your named star from here

The same historic telescope that has shown visitors Jupiter and Saturn for well over a century can, in principle, be pointed at the coordinates of a star named through Star Register. Explore the star catalogue to find one.