Valašské Meziříčí Observatory

The Valašské Meziříčí Observatory (Hvězdárna Valašské Meziříčí) is a Czech astronomical observatory and public science-education institution located in the town of Valašské Meziříčí in the Czech Republic. It is primarily dedicated to the popularization of astronomy, offering public lectures, seminars, school programs, and observation evenings, while also conducting professional observational work. Its origins trace back to the private Ballner Observatory, a wooden building with a three-metre dome erected in 1929 by Antonín Ballner on the Stínadla hill on the southern edge of the town; this is described as the oldest observatory in Moravia and is now a cultural monument. The present observatory was opened in the autumn of 1955, when a stone observatory designed by architect Zdeněk Plesník was built next to the historic wooden building. Its first director, Josef Doleček, also opened a second building in 1964 to serve as a professional workplace. From 1965 to 1995 the observatory served as a centre for post-secondary astronomical studies affiliated with the local gymnasium. In 2025 a new cultural and creative centre was opened at the observatory. The observatory is equipped with several domes and instruments. The main building has three domes: the central dome houses a Zeiss-coudé 150/2250 mm telescope used mainly for public programs; the eastern dome contains a Schmidt-Cassegrain 355/3550 mm reflector with a G2 CCD camera; and the western dome holds a Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain 280/2800 mm reflector. A separate southern building, used mainly for solar observation, has one dome with several instruments on a Zeiss VII parallactic mount, including an AS 200/3000 mm refractor, an E 130/1930 mm refractor, a prominence coronagraph 150/1950 mm, and a chromospheric telescope 135/2350 mm with an effective focal length of 5170 mm. The site also includes a lecture hall, a model of an Iridium satellite, a scale model of the solar system, a model of the Earth, a museum of significant rock samples, and a model of the local meridian in the garden. The entrance to the public observatory is decorated with busts of notable natural scientists. The observatory continues the solar-observation tradition of the Ballner Observatory, with ongoing professional monitoring of the Sun, prominences, and chromospheric events. Other professional activities include timing occultations of stars by solar-system bodies, observing selected types of variable stars, and studying interplanetary matter. For the public it organizes lectures and seminars on astronomy and space exploration, and it is very active online. It works closely with the Valašská Astronomical Society. Since 1957 a meteorological station operated by the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute (ČHMÚ) Ostrava-Poruba has been located on the grounds, automatically measuring basic meteorological elements such as air temperature and pressure, soil temperature, relative humidity, wind direction and speed, sunshine duration, and precipitation. The observatory is a publicly founded organization, with the municipality as its founder (zřizovatel).

The Valašské Meziříčí Observatory traces its origins to the private Ballner Observatory, built in 1929 by Antonín Ballner on the Stínadla hill on the southern edge of the town. The wooden building with a three-metre dome is described as the oldest observatory in Moravia; it was reconstructed and reopened to the public in 2005. The current observatory was opened in the autumn of 1955, when a stone observatory designed by architect Zdeněk Plesník was built next to the historic building. Its first director, Josef Doleček, opened a second building in 1964 to serve as a professional workplace. From 1965 to 1995 the observatory served as a centre for post-secondary astronomical studies affiliated with the local gymnasium. In 2025 a new cultural and creative centre was opened at the observatory. The observatory continues the solar-observation tradition of the Ballner Observatory, with ongoing professional monitoring of the Sun, prominences, and chromospheric events, as well as occultation timing, variable-star observation, and interplanetary-matter research. It works closely with the Valašská Astronomical Society. Since 1957 a meteorological station operated by the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute (ČHMÚ) Ostrava-Poruba has been located on the grounds.

• 2025

  New cultural and creative centre opened at the observatory.

• 2005

  Historic wooden Ballner Observatory reconstructed and reopened to the public.

• 1965

  Observatory begins serving as a centre for post-secondary astronomical studies affiliated with the local gymnasium (until 1995).

• 1964

  Second building opened by first director Josef Doleček as a professional workplace.

• 1957

  Meteorological station operated by ČHMÚ Ostrava-Poruba established on the grounds.

• 1955

  Current stone observatory opened in autumn, designed by architect Zdeněk Plesník.

• 1929

  Private Ballner Observatory built by Antonín Ballner on Stínadla hill; described as the oldest observatory in Moravia.

A public astronomical observatory and science-education institution focused on astronomy popularization, solar observation, and community programs.

• Public astronomy programs

• School programs

• Lectures and seminars on astronomy and space exploration

• Solar observation

• Occultation timing and variable-star observation

• Meteorological measurements

1. 1Hvězdárna Valašské Meziříčí official websiteastrovm.cz
2. 2Wikidata: Valašské Meziříčí observatorywikidata.org
3. 3Wikipedia (Czech): Hvězdárna Valašské Meziříčícs.wikipedia.org