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Observatory - Wikipedia

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Observatory - Wikipedia

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somethingworks56
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Observatory

An observatory is a location used for observing


terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy,
climatology/meteorology, geophysics, oceanography
and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which
observatories have been constructed.[1]

The term observatoire has been used in French since


at least 1976 to denote any institution that compiles
and presents data on a particular subject (such as
public health observatory) or for a particular
geographic area (European Audiovisual
Observatory). The Royal Greenwich observatory in England

Astronomical observatories
Astronomical observatories are mainly divided into four categories: space-based, airborne, ground-
based, and underground-based. Historically, ground-based observatories were as simple as
containing a mural instrument (for measuring the angle between stars) or Stonehenge (which has
some alignments on astronomical phenomena).

Ground-based observatories
Ground-based observatories, located on the surface of Earth, are used to make observations in the
radio and visible light portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Most optical telescopes are
housed within a dome or similar structure, to protect the delicate instruments from the elements.
Telescope domes have a slit or other opening in the roof that can be opened during observing, and
closed when the telescope is not in use. In most cases, the entire upper portion of the telescope
dome can be rotated to allow the instrument to observe different sections of the night sky. Radio
telescopes usually do not have domes.

For optical telescopes, most ground-based observatories are located far from major centers of
population, to avoid the effects of light pollution. The ideal locations for modern observatories are
sites that have dark skies, a large percentage of clear nights per year, dry air, and are at high
elevations. At high elevations, the Earth's atmosphere is thinner, thereby minimizing the effects of
atmospheric turbulence and resulting in better astronomical "seeing".[3] Sites that meet the above
criteria for modern observatories include the southwestern United States, Hawaii, Canary Islands,
the Andes, and high mountains in Mexico such as Sierra Negra.[4] Major optical observatories
include Mauna Kea Observatory and Kitt Peak National Observatory in the US, Roque de los
Muchachos Observatory in Spain, and Paranal Observatory and Cerro Tololo Inter-American
Observatory in Chile.[5][6]

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