Schafmatt observatory

Sternwarte Schafmatt is a public observatory perched on the first ridge of the Jura mountains, between the villages of Rohr and Oltingen in Switzerland, run by a long-standing local astronomy association.

About Schafmatt observatory

Sitting at around 840 metres elevation, the observatory is operated by the Astronomische Vereinigung Aarau, or Astronomical Association Aarau, a section of the Swiss Astronomical Society with roughly 120 members.

History

The Astronomische Vereinigung Aarau was founded in 1955 and has run Schafmatt observatory as a community astronomy hub ever since, building a active programme of research, education and public outreach over the decades.

Telescopes & research

Members focus their work on sunspot monitoring, star occultations and meteor astronomy, and the observatory is credited with the discovery of an asteroid moon. A webcam also allows remote monitoring of conditions at the site.

Location & getting there

Schafmatt sits on the first Jura ridge between Rohr, in canton Solothurn, and Oltingen, in canton Basel-Landschaft, giving it a genuinely rural, elevated position away from city light pollution.

Visiting Schafmatt observatory

The observatory opens for public tours every Friday, weather permitting, alongside lectures and other events. A dedicated youth group for ages 12 to 25 gives younger visitors a route into hands-on astronomy.

See your named star from here

With regular public tours and members who track occultations and meteors for a living, Schafmatt observatory is a natural place to look up the right ascension and declination of a star named through Star Register. See our star-naming packages or browse more sites in the observatory catalogue.