OBSERVATOIRE VALAŠSKÉ MEZIŘÍČÍ

The Valašské Observatory Meziříčí - located in the east of the Czech Republic, about 50 kilometres southwest of the city of Ostrava - has been in existence for more than 60 years! 60 years during which more than a million visitors have come to enjoy its infrastructures. It was initially a private observatory called "Kolna Badajna", built by an enthusiast, Antonin Ballner, in the late 1920s. Widely used for observations but also for various meetings and conferences, it was then under the control of the company that managed the city museum, at a time when Bohemia and Moravia were under German protectorate. Over time its activities have grown in importance, with the presence of many observers specialized in the study of the Sun and certain atypical stars (variable stars). It is also becoming clear that it must be developed, with the construction of new, more suitable buildings. It is at this stage that things get very complicated, due to the lack of available funding.... Indeed, at that time the region was very poor and it was necessary, and often even mandatory, to call for donations to build an infrastructure that at first sight was not very useful. The successive delays, vicissitudes and hazards of the various financing arrangements, and other setbacks related to the architecture of the buildings, have delayed the progress of the work. It was not until the late 1940s that work really began, and 1953 that the new building housing two domes came out of the ground. In 1955, the observatory was finally opened to the public. To this day, various development and rehabilitation works have been carried out, in order to obtain today a versatile and didactic observatory, open to all publics. It thus offers many evenings of observation, days of discovery of the Sun (to admire the protuberances in particular - contact the observatory in advance to know the dates scheduled during the day), but also conferences, discussions, seminars, experimental programs, etc.. Other activities are on the menu: discovery of an Iridium telecommunications satellite, eclectic exhibitions, presentation of a meridian, a sundial, etc. It should also be noted that the initiators of this project had the good idea to restore the original Ballner Observatory, made of matt black wood dating from 1929 (quite surprising when first discovered), in order to present temporary exhibitions. This observatory located in a rather "improbable" place really deserves a visit if you are visiting the region.