NATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY OF JAPAN (NAOJ) - OKAYAMA ASTROPHYSICAL OBSERVATORY

The Okayama Astrophysical Observatory (OAO) was founded in 1960 under the auspices of the Tokyo Astronomical Observatory. He owns a 188 cm large diameter telescope built by the now defunct Irish company Grubb-Parsons Inc. Two other telescopes are used, 91 and 65 cm in diameter, as well as a solar telescope 50 cm in diameter. The work carried out by astronomy teams includes a wide range of targets, star fields, bodies of the solar system, galaxies, stars, stellar clusters, nebulae, atypical objects located at the limits of the Universe, etc. The site on which it is located, accessible only by personal transport, is the summit of Mount Chikurin-Ji, at an altitude of (only) 372 m, in the southwestern region of Okayama province. On-site weather statistics are good, with an average of 120 nights per year, and an atmosphere stable enough to allow high-resolution observations and images to be taken. So much so that the place is considered the best astronomical site in Japan! The observatory employs about fifteen researchers and technical staff. Its visit is interesting, because it is the observatory as we imagine it, with its giant domes in a natural setting of quality. In addition, and which does not spoil anything, a museum is accessible at the entrance of the site, with some effective proposed attractions.