Iso-Heikkilä Observatory
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| Organization | Turun Ursa ry | ||||||
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| Code | 062 | ||||||
| Location | Iso-Heikkilä, Turku, Finland | ||||||
| Coordinates | 60°27′7″N 22°13′47″E / 60.45194°N 22.22972°ECoordinates: 60°27′7″N 22°13′47″E / 60.45194°N 22.22972°E | ||||||
| Established | 1937 | ||||||
| Website |
www www |
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| unnamed | 15 cm telescope |
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| unnamed | 13 cm telescope |
| unnamed | 19 cm Schmidt-Väisälä camera |
Iso-Heikkilä Observatory (Finnish: Iso-Heikkilän tähtitorni) is an amateur astronomical observatory used by a local amateur astronomical association, Turun Ursa ry in the Iso-Heikkilä district of Turku, Finland.
Referred to as Turku Observatory (062) by the Minor Planet Center, it was previously operated by the University of Turku from 1937 to 1972, and has been a world-renowned observatory, where several Finnish discoverers of minor planets made their observations.
The observatory was originally owned by the department of astronomy of the University of Turku. It was built in 1935 and 1936, and technically designed by physics and astronomy professor Yrjö Väisälä. Väisälä's research team discovered a total of 807 minor planets and 7 comets at the observatory. Väisälä also contributed significantly to research in the areas of optics and surveying.
As the city expanded and a steel factory was built under a kilometer away from the observatory, the astronomy department of the university moved to Tuorla Observatory in the 1950s. In the 1960s, an apartment building area was built in Iso-Heikkilä, preventing any observations of low-sky objects in all directions except north. Iso-Heikkilä remained in the use of students for some time, until the university gave up its ownership completely in 1972. The observatory building and the site are now owned by the city of Turku.
The observatory is currently operated by Turun Ursa ry, an astronomical association founded by Yrjö Väisälä in 1928. The association arranged in Väisälä's time and continues to arrange stargazing events for the general public at the observatory. The members use the observatory, as well as the Kevola Observatory, for amateur astronomical observations.
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