Tuorla Observatory is the Department of Astronomy at the
University of Turku
The University of Turku (, shortened ''UTU'') is a multidisciplinary public university with eight faculties located in the city of Turku in southwestern Finland. The university also has campuses in Rauma and Pori and research stations in Kevo ...
, southwest
Finland
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
. It is the largest astronomical research institute in Finland. Together with the
Space Research Laboratory at the Physics Department of the University of Turku, it forms the Väisälä Institute of Space Physics and Astronomy (VISPA).
History
Tuorla Observatory was established on April 29, 1952 by professor
Yrjö Väisälä
Yrjö Väisälä (; 6 September 1891 – 21 July 1971) was a Finnish astronomer and physicist.
His main contributions were in the field of optics. He was also active in geodetics, astronomy and optical metrology. He had an affectionate ni ...
.
A new observatory was needed because the old
Iso-Heikkilä Observatory
Iso-Heikkilä Observatory (, ) 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 () by the Minor Planet Cent ...
close to the centre of
Turku
Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...
started suffering from heavy
light pollution
Light pollution is the presence of any unwanted, inappropriate, or excessive artificial Visible spectrum, lighting. In a descriptive sense, the term ''light pollution'' refers to the effects of any poorly implemented lighting sources, during the ...
from the nearby city and especially the industrial areas to the south of the observatory. A new place was found in Tuorla, which is one of the small villages in (former)
Piikkiö
Piikkiö (; ), is a List of former municipalities of Finland, former municipality of Finland. Piikkiö was consolidated with Kaarina on 1 January 2009.
It is located in the provinces of Finland, province of Western Finland and is part of the Sout ...
municipality. It is located about 12 kilometres from Turku towards
Helsinki
Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...
.
The first part of the observatory contained a main building and a 51 meter long tunnel for optical research. Due to the growing size of the department, new parts to it have been built in 1989 and 2002. Starting in 1974, the observatory was part of the Physics Department until 1991 when it became again an independent research institute of the university. In 2009 the observatory merged again with the physics department, and it is now one of the seven laboratories of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at University of Turku.
The observatory has several telescopes located around its main buildings and also uses international telescopes like the
Nordic Optical Telescope
The Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT) is an astronomical telescope located at Roque de los Muchachos Observatory, La Palma in the Canary Islands. The telescope saw first light in 1988, and was officially inaugurated during September 1989. Regular o ...
. The one meter
Dall-Kirkham reflector is the largest optical telescope in Finland.
Since October 2008, the
Tuorla Planetarium has been operating next to the observatory.
Research areas
The main area of research in Tuorla is
active galactic nuclei
An active galactic nucleus (AGN) is a compact region at the center of a galaxy that emits a significant amount of energy across the electromagnetic spectrum, with characteristics indicating that this luminosity is not produced by the stars. Such e ...
; about half of the researchers are working on the topic. Other areas are
dark matter
In astronomy, dark matter is an invisible and hypothetical form of matter that does not interact with light or other electromagnetic radiation. Dark matter is implied by gravity, gravitational effects that cannot be explained by general relat ...
,
cosmology
Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe, the cosmos. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', with the meaning of "a speaking of the wo ...
,
astrodynamics
Orbital mechanics or astrodynamics is the application of ballistics and celestial mechanics to rockets, satellites, and other spacecraft. The motion of these objects is usually calculated from Newton's laws of motion and the Newton's law of univ ...
,
binary stars
A binary star or binary star system is a system of two stars that are gravitationally bound to and in orbit around each other. Binary stars in the night sky that are seen as a single object to the naked eye are often resolved as separate stars us ...
, solar neighborhood,
solar physics
Solar physics is the branch of astrophysics that specializes in the study of the Sun. It intersects with many disciplines of pure physics and astrophysics.
Because the Sun is uniquely situated for close-range observing (other stars cannot be re ...
and
astrobiology
Astrobiology (also xenology or exobiology) is a scientific field within the List of life sciences, life and environmental sciences that studies the abiogenesis, origins, Protocell, early evolution, distribution, and future of life in the univ ...
. The optical laboratory (Opteon) produces high quality optics for telescopes. In particular, the main mirror of the
ESA
The European Space Agency (ESA) is a 23-member international organization devoted to space exploration. With its headquarters in Paris and a staff of around 2,547 people globally as of 2023, ESA was founded in 1975 in the context of European ...
spacecraft
Herschel Space Observatory
The Herschel Space Observatory was a space observatory built and operated by the European Space Agency (ESA). It was active from 2009 to 2013, and was the largest infrared telescope ever launched until the launch of the James Webb Space Telesco ...
was ground and polished at Tuorla.
See also
*
List of astronomical observatories
This is a partial list of astronomical observatories ordered by name, along with initial dates of operation (where an accurate date is available) and location. The list also includes a final year of operation for many observatories that are no lon ...
*
Helsinki University Observatory
*
Metsähovi Observatory Metsähovi may refer to:
* 2486 Metsähovi, a main-belt asteroid
* Metsähovi Radio Observatory
The Metsähovi Radio Observatory is an astronomical observatory in Finland, affiliated with the Aalto University. Its main premises are in Metsähovi, ...
*
Kevola Observatory
The Kevola Observatory is located in Kevola in Paimio in South-Western Finland, some 35 km east from the city of Turku. The observatory is currently owned by ''Turun Ursa ry'', a local astronomical association operating in Turku area. The bu ...
References
External links
Tuorla Observatory home pageA short history of the observatory
{{Authority control
Astronomical observatories in Finland
University of Turku
Buildings and structures in Southwest Finland
Astronomy-optics society