Dome Reconstruction

The dome reconstruction began on July 30, 2007 and reached it's final phase on November 19. The dome nowadays undergoes finishing touches and technical calibration. It will be back in operation at the beginning of March, 2008. You can follow the reconstruction progress in our image gallery.

At the beginning there was an old dome...

More than 50 years passed since the grand opening of the Masaryk University Observatory and the weather left its mark on the mechanical components of the observatory dome. The problem has become crucial due to the serious increase of the undergraduate students enrolled in the Applied Physics - Astrophysics programme, who need to carry out observing runs for their theses. Therefore, our division received 3.2 million CZK in funding granted from the Masaryk University Headquarters at the beginning of 2007. This allowed us to perform complex reconstruction of the old dome building and complete replacement of the malfunctioning dome.

The dome reconstruction is indeed a unique event, connected with remarkable interest of media and public. However, the main goal is to enhance educational potential and scientific output of the observatory.