Observatories

In the high desert east of Bend, the University of Oregon maintains a research observatory on a remote mountain peak.

An observatory with a 54-meter-wide radio telescope sits in the mountains of Armenia.

This Idaho state park boasts the tallest single-structured sand dune in North America.

This Belgian observatory bears a striking resemblance to Futurama's Planet Express building.

Peer into the night sky with one of Norway's oldest associations of land-based space explorers.

Safely view the Soufrière Hills volcano, which has been erupting since 1995.

An amateur telescope-making club has been gathering at this Vermont site for more than a century.

The headquarters of one of Japan’s leading astronomy research institutions features several historic observatory facilities and a 2,000-year-old burial mound.

Walk down these stairs to get an underwater view of Switzerland's Lake Zug.

The longest timber-piled jetty in the world has an underwater observatory.

A 132-year-old telescope continues to keep watch over the night skies above Providence.

Since its original beginnings as a weather observatory mountaintop, this facility played an instrumental role in gathering atmospheric data for almost 100 years.

This Asian-inspired tower in a lush urban park provides spectacular panoramic views of Baltimore.

Switzerland's oldest public observatory is an important part of the Zurich cityscape.

This public observatory is home to the "celestial cannon," the longest pointable telescope in the world.

Even though some of the buildings date back to the Victorian era, this research institute is still involved in cutting-edge astronomy research.