Bordeaux observatory - Würzburg Radar

33270 Floirac, France (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)

invisiblebordeaux.blogspot, February 2016:
Perched high above the city, in the hilly right-bank suburb of Floirac, is the Observatory of Bordeaux, one of the most significant scientific sites in the area, and one for which a new chapter will open later in 2016.

The observatory was founded in 1878 by the Bordeaux-born astronomer Georges Rayet  and has, over the years, become a renowned establishment initially excelling in the fields of celestial mechanics (calculation of the motion and trajectory of celestial objects) and astrometry (measurement of the positions and movements of celestial objects). From the 1970s onwards, the observatory’s focus extended to include studies in radio waves and research into the Earth’s atmosphere.

At the time of writing the observatory is officially the home of Bordeaux University’s 70-strong Astrophysics Laboratory (LAB, Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Bordeaux), a unit which is jointly run by the University’s Observatoire Aquitain des Sciences de l’Univers (OASU) and France’s national centre for scientific research (CNRS).

Although these days the unit’s team have access to the kind of computer wizardry we all take for granted, the observatory boasts an impressive collection of old-school astronomy, meteorology and timekeeping equipment, including no less than 500 instruments of various shapes and sizes ranging from clocks and barometers to chronographs, spectrographs and cameras. The observatory archives store more than 4,300 astronomy photographs that date back to 1892, and fifty or so glass plate negatives. As well as being of immense historical value, documents of the like are still used for research purposes to determine the movement of stars over the course of time.

The observatory’s most visible heritage is its buildings (19 in all) which, since 2009, have been listed as historic monuments. Some, such as Bâtiments Rayet, Bouguer and Rayet provide a working environment for the researchers. Others are named in reference to the instruments which they house: le Grand-Equatorial, le Petit-Equatorial, la Table-Equatoriale. Finally, one structure stands apart from all others: the impressive Würtzberg radiotelescope, installed here in 1962 after a previous life as a radar used by Nazi forces on the northern coast of France (after the war it was recovered by French forces and used first in Marcoussis then Meudon, both in the suburbs of Paris).

The big changes which are afoot are that, come September 2016, the Astrophysics Laboratory will have relocated to more modern, purpose-designed facilities on university campus land in Talence. The Floirac premises are therefore set to be entirely vacated, although there is every chance the larger telescopes and viewing equipment will remain. 

The most likely scenario is that the observatory buildings and 30 acres (112 hectares) of land, which are State property, will be taken over by Aerocampus Aquitaine, the aeronautical maintenance training institute based in nearby Latresne. The Floirac site would therefore be converted into a training facility for the aerospace sector. The site would also be used as a venue for corporate events and a cultural centre putting on events for the general public. Other projects which appear to be on the cards include the creation of a planetarium, something which does not currently exist in Bordeaux. The concept would involve offering visitors a multimedia journey through space and time, with the added benefit of also being able to view vintage astronomy equipment at close quarters.

As so often at Invisible Bordeaux, the case continues, and perhaps the next time I return the place will look and feel very, very different…

• Imprint
• Privacy
• Terms of Use
• Copyright
• FAQ

• About Radiomuseum.org
• Contact
• Press
• Logos
• send2friend