Do you know the story about The Observatory in Zagreb?
For as long as man can remember, the sky has represented an infinite, mysterious expanse. At the same time, it is beyond the understanding of the human mind, yet is so fascinating and alluring. Phenomena such as the eclipse of the sun on a bright and sunny day, or a blaze of falling meteorites on a summer’s night, have aroused admiration and awe. Even with all the scientific facts that have been amassed over many centuries, showing how this expanse has been viewed throughout history, we still find ourselves amazed. We must not forget that the Earth was once thought of as a flat surface, and that Galileo Galilei’s revolutionary theories about the earth being round resulted in the threat of death at the stake. Or going even further back, such natural phenomena were attributed to God’s disposition or as the result of evil forces. Navigation by stars, along with satellite navigation, is as essential today as it was in the time when people were discovering the New World.
These amazing discoveries, and the great men responsible for them, have their roots in the past. However, these roots are firmly embedded in the present, along with the technology and people who carry on breaking through the frontiers of what may seem impossible and inconceivable to ordinary people.
The Observatory, located in the Priests’ Tower (Popov toranj) in Zagreb’s Gornji Grad (Upper Town), was founded on the initiative of the Croatian Natural Science Society. The city government provided the space in the Priests’ Tower, authorised material for the reconstruction and for the installation of the observatory dome and telescope. The opening was held on 5 December 1903. August Kopff was appointed as the first Observatory Director. He is well known for popularising natural sciences and Oton Kučera’s techniques.
Those of us who stroll through Upper Town and who have passed near this important building on numerous occasions could easily assume that our Observatory is of no importance to the rest of the world. But this is not the case. The Heidelberg astrologer, August Kopff, named a small asteroid (number 589, discovered in 1906) “Croatia”, in honour of the opening of the Planetarium. He added to the international reputation and affirmation of the first city observatory in this part of Europe.
Along with its scientific work, the Observatory has popularised science since its very beginnings. The fertile period of this popularisation started in the middle of the 20th century when the Observatory became known throughout the world through its publications in Esperanto. The purchasing of a new electric telescope in the 1960s led to work of higher quality. The Observatory and the Croatian Natural Science Society contributed greatly on a cultural level with the purchase of a Planetarium in 1963. This was presented to the Technical Museum where it is in use to this day.
In the mid 1980s, the building complex housing the Observatory underwent extensive refurbishment. In 1992 a new dome was installed, the space and equipment were modernised and the services updated. The Observatory still attracts many astronomers and natural science enthusiasts. With its traditional programmes on offer to the citizens of Zagreb (lectures, sky observations and other activities), the Observatory has confirmed its cultural contribution to the life of Zagreb. Today, it forms part of all significant astronomic teaching projects and programmes, and its scientific work in the field of the physics of the Sun is carried out in cooperation with the Hvar Observatory.
