Tartu Observatory
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| Organization | Institute of Astrophysics and Atmospheric Physics (Tõravere) |
|---|---|
| Location | Tartumaa, Estonia |
| Coordinates | |
| Altitude | Unknown |
| Webpage | [1] |
| Telescopes | |
| Unnamed telescope | 1.5 meter Cassegrain reflector |
| Unnamed telescope | 0.6 meter reflector |
| Unnamed telescope | 0.5 meter reflector |
The Tartu Observatory is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by Institute of Astrophysics and Atmospheric Physics of Tõravere. It is located on Tõravere hill in Tartu County, Estonia.
[edit] History
The Tartu observatory is the second observatory to be named Tartu. In 1957, old Tartu observatory was given land on Tõravere hill and in 1958 construction began. By 1963, the observatory building was completed, part of the astronomers from the old Tartu observatory moved in and the 50 cm telescope got first light.
In 1964 an international conference is held and Tartu observatory is renamed the F.G.W. Struve observatory. In 1974 the 1.5 meter telescope become operational, and in 1995 the observatory's name revered back to Tartu observatory.
[edit] Equipment
Tartu observatory has three main telescope. The first is the 1.5 meter Cassegrain reflector, which Tartu observatory claims is the largest optical telescope in Northern Europe. As of 2001, it's mirror was undergoing repairs. The other two telescopes are 0.6 and 0.5 meter reflectors. The observatory also has three CCD cameras, an ORBIS, HPC-1, and a ST-6.
