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Guided visits to the National Astronomical Observatory

Observing the night sky with professional instruments is an exciting experience and for this it is not necessary to leave Santiago.
IMPORTANT: We inform that due to the concern arising from the increase in cases of the 2019-nCoV strain (also known as Coronavirus COVID-19). The DAS of the Faculty of Physical and Mathematical Sciences of the University of Chile has decided to suspend -preventively- the visits for all public that will take place this month. We deeply regret what happened, we hope to return to normality in the shortest possible time.

Since 1960 the National Astronomical Observatory has been located in Cerro Calán (Las Condes), next to the Department of Astronomy of the University of Chile. In this place, the students of the Postgraduate program take Guided Tours of our facilities with the aim of bringing science closer to all people and having the opportunity to marvel at the mysteries of the Universe.

Our program has two visit options:

Night Visits

Attendees will be able to enjoy a guided tour of our historic telescopes, where they will be able to understand the operation of these instruments and their main uses. They will also be able to listen to a talk on basic astronomical concepts, to later give way to the observation of the sky through the OAN telescopes.

Designed for the general public and schools (students from 1st grade).

It is important to clarify that the observation is carried out whenever the weather conditions allow it, that is, only when it is clear and visits are only suspended in case of rain.

The activity is guided at all times by students of the Postgraduate program of the University of Chile, who are pursuing specialization studies for both Master’s and Doctorates.

The students are also trained in customer service in order to bring their knowledge to all attendees in an enjoyable and simple way.

The night visits are made on Monday (schools and institutions) and Tuesday (general public) at 7:30 p.m., lasts approximately 2 hours. Children under the age of 15 must attend in the company of an adult.

The activity has a cost of $ 3,500 pesos per person.

Day Visits

Designed exclusively for schools, these visits take place from Monday to Thursday at two times: 11 am and 3 pm.

The tour consists of a visit to the main telescopes in the department, a brief talk on basic concepts of astronomy and the projection of supporting audiovisual material. This activity is aimed at children from 4th grade and the maximum number is 50 people per visit.

The activity has differentiated costs between municipal, subsidized and private schools.

IMPORTANT: Once the registration is made, we will contact you to confirm the visit

Reservations for visits

To visit our Observatory you must make a telephone reservation from Monday to Thursday from 2:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at (02) 2977 1154 or by email at extension [at] das.uchile.cl.

Our Observatory only attends visits at the times indicated above.

Our Astronomy Department was created in 1965 by the Faculty of Physical Sciences and Mathematics of the University of Chile.

Our facilities are located in Cerro Calán (Las Condes) together with the National Astronomical Observatory, founded in 1852.

Contact information

Observatory Outreach and Visits:visitas@das.uchile.cl
Communications:+562 29771112
Direction secretary: +562 29771091
Undergraduate Program Secretary:+562 29771090

Address

Camino El Observatorio 1515, Las Condes