Ayabe Astronomical Observatory Kyoto

Kyoto is one of the major tourist destinations of Japan; it is one of the few cities of Japan that boasts of a rich cultural and historical legacy. There is no dearth of attractions in the city and Ayabe Astronomical Observatory, Kyoto is one of the major tourist attractions of the city. It is one of the top astronomical observatories of Japan and it was founded in the year 1995. The observatory allows the visitors to get an idea about anything related to astronomy. For example here you can learn about the stars, comets, planets, galaxies, black holes and other things. The Ayabe observatory also provides you the opportunity to touch an iron meteorite and get on the space scale to find out how much you would weigh in outer space. If the weather permits then you can also have look at the stars during daytime.

The Ayabe Astronomical Observatory is highly equipped. The observatory features a 95-cm reflector, which is used for research and educational programs. The aperture of the reflector is 95 cm and its focus ratio is F13.5 (Cassegrain), F4.5 (Newton). The detector used in the reflector is cooled CCD camera (Astro Cam). There is also a solar telescope in the observatory which is used to observe the stars and the planets. The aperture of the solar telescope is 10-cm x 2, 6-cm x 2 and its band is H-alpha, Whitelight.

Another highlight of the observatory is the High Vision Theater, where various shows are shown to the visitors of the observatory. The theater hosts star watching program every Friday, Saturday and Sunday form 6 pm to 9.30 pm. The theater is open on all days except on Monday and during the daytime the theater is open from 9 am to 4.30 pm. Admission fee for the high vision theater is 200 yen for adults and 100 yen for children. Apart from the reflector, telescope and the high vision theater, there is an exhibition hall in the premises of the observatory, which houses various kinds of exhibitions related to astronomy.

The Ayabe Astronomical Observatory is open on all the days of the week apart from Mondays and on days after a public holiday. The entry fee of the observatory is 200 yen and 100 yen for Elementary and Junior High School Students.

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