OBSERVATORY OF MEUDON

The Meudon Observatory is part of an entity called the Paris Observatory, including those of Paris and Nançay. Like the observatory in Paris, it is closed until 2020 to the public due to rehabilitation work. Located on a beautiful hill, its history really starts in the early eighteenth century when it bears the name of Meudon Royal Castle, a superb residence built for Louis XIV's son. After his fire in 1871 during the Franco-Prussian war, Jules Janssen, famous French astronomer, asked for his ruins to complement his own already existing astronomical installations. He then decided to launch the construction of a large telescope capable of pushing the limits of the sky's observations even further. The construction of the dome capable of receiving this prestigious instrument began in 1889. Its 18 m diameter combined with an estimated 100 tons weight makes it impressive. It is set up 7 years later and becomes one of the largest ever built in the world (and largest in Europe), stuffed only in diameter by the eyeglasses of Yerkes and Lick (USA) observatories. Its objective at the front of the tube leaves pantois with its 83 cm diameter. During the twentieth century, the imposing observatory of the observatory resisted perfectly the assaults of time, but the 1999 storm seriously damaged the dome. His restoration starts a few years later. Meudon's observatory is not just about this big telescope… Other instruments are present, including a telescope of 1 m in diameter that is not far from there, also under the cupole (little used due to high light pollution), as well as material for very specific observations.