Announcement

ESO Open House Day 2014

Step inside the headquarters of the most productive ground-based observatory in the world

20 August 2014

On Saturday 11 October 2014 the European Southern Observatory (ESO) will open its doors to the public between 11:00 and 18:00 CEST at its headquarters in Garching bei München, near Munich, Germany.

This year, visitors will also be able to visit two impressive new buildings that have been inaugurated since the last Open House Day in 2013 and will enjoy a diverse range of activities to introduce them to the world of ESO. This event is part of the Open House Day activities for the whole Garching research campus, and several other local institutes will also open their doors to the public.

ESO can be found at location number 39 on this map of the campus.

Some of the highlights of the 2014 programme are:

  • See ESO´s two new buildings — participate in guided tours through the innovatively styled office building and technical building. Learn how ESO creates artificial stars, see what mirror prototypes for the European Extremely Large Telescope look like and more;
  • Virtual and 3D tours — embark on all-inclusive journeys into and around some of ESO’s most breathtaking sites and groundbreaking instruments;
  • Live connection to Paranal and ALMA — connect to ESO's Very Large Telescope at Paranal and to ALMA, the largest astronomical project in existence, consisting of 66 antennas located at 5000 metres above sea level on the Chajnantor Plateau in Chile;
  • ESO Chile Chill — take a moment to relax by watching incredible images from our sites in Chile and listening to a chillout soundtrack;
  • Talks, podcasts and documentaries — listen, watch, and learn more about ESO;
  • Planetarium show and virtual journey through the stars — get a chance to see the stars, even in broad daylight, thanks to our planetarium activity, photos of the night sky and a tour of the sky with Stellarium;
  • Face painting, comet factory, infrared photos, picture books and gifts for the little ones — children will have lots of fun having their faces painted with diverse astronomical motifs such as stars, galaxies or comets, learn how to build a comet and have their infrared photo taken;
  • Solar observations — watch the Sun through a telescope, if weather allows;
  • Hands-on engineering work — sessions with engineering presentations and hands-on activities for youngsters, especially between the ages of 13 and 16.
  • Plus much more.

Visitors do not need to book a visit in advance. You can simply show up at the activities you are interested in. ESO has a cafeteria where light refreshments will be available.

Media representatives who wish to attend the event are kindly asked to confirm their participation by contacting osandu@partner.eso.org. Information on how to travel to ESO Headquarters in Garching can be found here.

Links

Contacts

Oana Sandu
ESO, Garching, Germany
Community Coordinator
Phone: +49 89 3200 6965
E-mail: osandu@partner.eso.org

Herbert Zodet
ESO, Garching, Germany
Video Coordinator
Phone: +49 89 3200 6422
E-mail: hzodet@eso.org

About the Announcement

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Images

Open House Day 2014
Open House Day 2014
Open House Day 2014 (in German)
Open House Day 2014 (in German)