In Gorky Park you can look at the planets and stars - in the warm season there is a small but real observatory.
Story
The first astronomy study point was opened in Gorky Park in 1929. There was a five-inch Zeiss refracting telescope, an armillary sphere, an Earth globe, a sundial, a reading room and a stage.
In the 50-60s, in the wake of increased interest in space, astronomical pavilions were built in several Moscow parks. The pavilions were open to everyone who wanted to look at the stars, so they began to be called folk pavilions. Only two of them have survived to this day - in Gorky Park and Sokolniki Park.
The building was closed in the early 90s and was used as a warehouse for about 20 years. After restoration, the observatory was opened in September 2012.
Equipment
The observatory's dome opens to view the sky automatically and can rotate 360 degrees in just one minute and 50 seconds.
Telescopes:
- Main - 14-inch Celestron CGE PRO 1400HD mirror-lens telescope with 841x magnification
- Solar – Coronado SolarMax 90 DoubleStack on Advanced GT mount
What can you see
Employees of the Moscow Planetarium are on duty in the building: setting up the telescope, giving lectures with demonstrations of the starry sky and answering questions.
Using the telescope, visitors can see the entire spectrum of celestial objects, including galaxies, nebulae, and double stars. In the second half of October, Jupiter is visible.
Of course, observations require the absence of clouds, so if you plan to look through a telescope, come in clear weather.
Large trees have grown near the observatory, so the view may sometimes be limited.
Visiting information
The room is small - only about 15 people can fit near the telescope.
Visiting is possible in the evening for sessions in a group, which is recruited from individual visitors, and individually. Session duration is 45 minutes.
Registration is made here: fantasy-trip.timepad.ru/event/799560
Tickets can be purchased both on the website and at the box office before the start of the show, if there are still free seats.
How to get there
By public transport: metro Park Kultury or metro Oktyabrskaya, then 5-7 minutes walk to Gorky Park.
The observatory is located to the right of the main entrance.
Opening hours
Daily, by session:
- from 20-00 to 20-45
- from 21-00 to 21-45
- from 22-00 to 22-45
- from 23-00 to 23-45
The schedule is approximate.
Ticket prices
- Excursion in a group – 200 rubles
- Individual excursion – 2,500 rubles
- Reduced visit – 100 rubles
Free for pensioners, large families until the youngest child reaches 16 years of age, orphans, children without parental care, disabled people.
In Moscow there are many places to admire the starry sky, including planetariums and observatories open to the general public.
The largest in Russia and one of the largest in Europe. The open-air “Sky Park” Astronomical Site, which welcomes guests from May to September, houses astronomical instruments and instruments for observing stars and planets, studying astronomy and other sciences. Visitors to the site can go to the Big Observatory, where the only Zeiss-300 refracting telescope in Moscow is installed, available for mass observations. The last floor of the planetarium is the “Great Star Hall”, where more than 9 thousand celestial bodies are projected onto the dome using a projector.
Ticket price: 300 rubles
Address: st. Sadovaya-Kudrinskaya, 5, building 1.
# 2. People's Observatory in Gorky Park.
One of the few sites in Moscow parks where you can watch the stars. The observatory in Gorky Park was closed to visitors for more than 20 years: the premises were used as a warehouse. In 2012, it was renovated, equipped with new equipment and open to everyone. The observatory is equipped with a Celestron CGE PRO mirror-lens telescope. The device allows you to observe celestial objects in conditions of high illumination in Moscow at night, and during the day you can observe the Sun, Moon and Venus. The observatory is open from mid-April to the end of September.
Ticket price: 200 rubles, reduced price – 100 rubles
Address: Krymsky Val, 9.
# 3. People's Observatory in Sokolniki Park.
Open all year round. At the moment, its building has been completely restored, new telescopes have been installed to observe the night sky and the sun. The main feature of the observatory is a large modern telescope with a main mirror diameter of 406 mm for night observations of deep space objects, as well as a solar telescope with a lens diameter of 90 mm for daytime observations. Observations using a telescope are carried out in clear weather during the day - the sun, and in the evening - the moon, planets and other celestial objects. The telescope allows you to travel along the lunar surface, see its craters and mountain ranges. In addition, you can see snow caps at the poles of Mars, phases of Venus, and the Andromeda nebula. In case of bad weather conditions, the observatory has the only planetarium in Moscow with an image projection onto the dome. Here visitors are shown the constellations.
Enter the park through the large arch from the Krymsky Val side and immediately turn right. You will see an alley that leads to a burgundy and white round building. You should go there.
How to register for the Observatory
Current schedule. If cloudiness or precipitation is expected, we do not open the recording until the weather stabilizes. Our astronomers also actively participate in scientific expeditions - during their departure we organize lectures on astrophotography and other topics related to space.
Telescopes at the Observatory
Main - Celestron EdgeHD 14 on CGE Pro mount
Solar - Coronado SolarMax 90 DoubleStack on Advanced GT mount
Historical reference
The first astronomical pavilion was installed on the territory of the Park of Culture and Recreation back in 1929. The plan of the Park of that time shows that the pavilion was located in approximately the same place as the current observatory.
The observatory building was part of a complex of buildings that included a sundial, an Earth globe, an armillary sphere, a stage, a reading room and visual propaganda stands. The Gorky Park Observatory was equipped with a five-inch Zeiss refractor telescope. Here you could look at the stars and make wishes.
In the late 50s and early 60s of the last century, several astronomical pavilions were opened in Moscow parks, which were open in the summer. Planetarium employees and students from astronomical clubs were on duty there. Small amateur telescopes were installed in the open air; everyone could join in observing the celestial bodies and receive advice from the astronomer on duty. Later, on the basis of some astronomical pavilions, small observatories were built, in which stationary telescopes were installed. These observatories began to be called public observatories, since access there was open to everyone. In good weather and clear skies, astronomical observations were carried out here for the inquisitive public.
The construction of a mass observatory corresponded to the main provisions of the master plan for the development of the Gorky Central Park of Culture and Leisure in the fifties of the twentieth century. The activities of the park pursued the goal of creating a new type of institution, organically combining broad cultural and educational work with the organization of recreation for workers, and responded to such priority tasks as combining recreation with the acquisition of knowledge and satisfying various cultural needs in the field of politics, science, technology, art, and also contributed to the mass character and diversity of forms of cultural activity. To this day, only two of those observatories have survived - in Gorky Park and in Sokolniki Park.
The People's Observatory in Gorky Park has been closed to visitors for more than twenty years. In September 2012, its doors opened to everyone. Now there is a new powerful telescope and an automatic sliding dome installed here.
Now the planetarium has several levels: a 4D cinema, exhibitions on astronomy and physics, a small star hall, as well as the Urania Museum, where you can learn about the history of the Moscow planetarium; large and small observatory. And, of course, under the dome, every visitor will see over 9,000 celestial bodies through a special projector.
metro station "Barrikadnaya", Sadovaya-Kudrinskaya st., 5, building 1
Despite the fact that this small domed planetarium is intended for use by military personnel and students of military schools, it is also accessible to other citizens. Here you can attend an interesting lecture, look through a telescope, or take a group excursion. Unfortunately, there is a short holiday here now, but from September 6 the planetarium will open its doors again.
metro station "Dostoevskaya", Suvorovskaya square, 2 C32
The People's Observatory in Gorky Park had been closed to visitors for more than twenty years, and it seemed that the townspeople were unlikely to be lucky enough to visit it again. But in September 2012 its doors opened to everyone. A new powerful telescope and an automatic sliding dome are installed here, which cannot but please lovers of stars and sky observations.
Oktyabrskaya metro station, Gorky Park, Krymsky Val, 9
Also in 2012, an observatory was opened in Sokolniki Park. The space theme begins to develop in the area in front of the building - here is the Astronomers' Garden, where you can take a walk and even touch the planets.
The planetarium itself has the latest equipment, which has no analogues in other observatories in Moscow and regions of the Russian Federation, so it’s a pleasure to look at the stars here.
Sokolniki metro station, Sokolnichesky Val st., 1, building 1
This place is interesting both as an architectural monument and as a space where great discoveries were made and enormous work was carried out. For example, it was here that the existence of “noctilucent clouds” was discovered, the Moscow Gravitational Anomaly was explored, gravimetric maps of the territories of Russia and the seas in the country were created, the mechanical theory of cometary forms was developed, and for the first time in the world the temperature of the Sun and its magnitude were determined.
How to get to the Observatory
Enter the park through the large arch from the Krymsky Val side and immediately turn right. You will see an alley that leads to a burgundy and white round building. You should go there.
They'll tell you about the stars
- Dmitry Trushin - astronomer, teacher, lecturer at the Moscow Planetarium, tour guide at the Gorky Park People's Observatory, popularizer of science
- Andrey Malykhin is a junior researcher at the Institute of Space Research of the Russian Academy of Sciences, has been involved in observational astronomy for more than half his life
- Ekaterina Gorbova - member of the Russian Geographical Society, photographer, organizer of astronomical trips
Evening observation schedule
- 21:30-22:15 (group tour)
- 22:15-23:00 (group tour)
- 23:00-23:45 (individual tour)
How to register for the Observatory
Current schedule. If cloudiness or precipitation is expected, we do not open the recording until the weather stabilizes. Our astronomers also actively participate in scientific expeditions - during their departure we organize lectures on astrophotography and other topics related to space.
Ticket options
- Group excursion - the group is made up of individual visitors who have purchased a ticket. One adult - 200 rubles.
- An individual tour is a closed event just for you. You can come alone or with a group of up to 15 people. The total price for one person and for a group in this case is 2,500 rubles.
- Discount ticket - 100 rubles. Discount tickets cannot be purchased online - only at the Observatory ticket office immediately before the start of the lecture if there are free seats in the group. Benefits are provided to children from 7 to 17 years old inclusive; full-time students of educational institutions of primary and secondary vocational education; full-time students of higher educational institutions; pensioners.
- Free - orphans; children left without parental care; pensioners; people with disabilities; WWII veterans; members of families with three or more children until the youngest child reaches the age of 16.
Important
The observatory can only accommodate 15 people - so we ask that you purchase your ticket in advance to ensure you are guaranteed access to the observations. Since the Observatory is very small, we will not be able to offer you a seat. Please wear comfortable shoes to avoid getting tired from standing for 45 minutes.