A&A – Astronomy and Astrophysics

DATA ABOUT RESPONDENT

Full name
Istvan Vince
Name of your institution
Astronomical Observatory
Institutions’s country
Serbia
Institution’s address
Volgina 7 11160 Belgrade Serbia
Are you responsible on behalf of the institution
Yes
Your position in the institution
  • Research Infrastructure Manager (administrative)
Your telephone number
+381 11 2419553
Your email address
ivince@aob.rs
Institution's website address
http://www.aob.rs

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE OR IMPORTANT RESEARCH EQUIPMENT

Research infrastrcture website
http://www.aob.rs
Organisation / institution type of RI
  • National scientific organisation/institution

Main scientificdomain: Physics and Astronomy

Category: Other Physics and Astronomy RI

Other scientific and technological domains served by RI
  • Physics and Astronomy
RI type
  • Distributed
  • Other: Global
Short description

The Astronomical Observatory of Belgrade is one of the oldest scientific institutions in Serbia. It was founded in 1887.

Eight instruments procured from Germany, on account of the First World War reparations, were mounted in 1934 and constituted the observational basis of the Observatory:
1. Large Refractor - equatorial Zeiss 650/10550 mm

2. Solar Spectrograph

3. Large Transit Instrument Askania 190/2578 mm equipped with two vacuum meridian marks and Opton collimator

4. Large Vertical Circle Askania 190/2578 mm

5. Zeiss Astrograph 160/800 mm

6. Photovisual Refractor Askania 135/1000 and 125/1000 mm

7. Transit Instrument Bamberg 100/1000 mm

8. Zenith - Telescope Askania 110/1287 mm.

In addition, Meade reflector 400 mm was purchased in 2005.

Building of a new astronomical station (AS) of the Astronomical observatory of Belgrade on the mountain Vidojevica near Prokuplje at an altitude of 1155 m is nearly completed. Scientific research carried out at the AOB closely followed the trends in the astronomical and astrophysical research: observations of minor planets, comets and double stars and determination of their orbits, stellar photometry, spectroscopy and polarimetry (mostly eruptive stars,  cool supergiants and Be stars), spectrography of the Sun, modelling of spectral lines in a large variety of astrophysical plasma. Today scientific topic covered by the Staff are:

·       Astrophysics of stars and Sun

·       Astrophysical spectroscopy

·       Stellar and galactic systems

·       Interstellar and intergalactic matter

·       Cosmology and astrobiology

·       Dynamic astronomy and planetology

·       History and philosophy of astronomy

The research is financed by the Ministry of Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia  through 5-years project grants.

OPERATION AND UPGRADE OF RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE AND OR IMPORTANT RESEARCH EQUIPMENT

Years in operation
  • More than 25 years
Comment on cooperation
The possibilities of cooperation are defined by research fields covered by research programs of the AOB. There are two main programs: astrophysics and astrodynamics. Both of these programs include practical and theoretical investigations of physics and dynamics of celestial bodies. There is no cooperation with industry. Common research interests are the best way to attract new users. The main cooperation country partners are: United Kingdom, USA, France, Spain, Russia, Italy, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece etc. Within the region, scientific cooperation has been carried out with Croatia, Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, but dominantly with Croatia.

STAFF, INTERNAL USERS AND EXTERNAL USERS

Short description of access policy and procedures for users of this research infrastructure
AOB research facilities and research infrastructure are opened for external users, for national and international cooperation. The conditions for access are usually defined by bilateral or multilateral protocols. In average, about five researchers per year visit the Observatory and use the facilities. Researchers from other observatories, faculties, institutes, graduate and postgraduate students are the typical external users.

FINANCE

Main sources of funding for setting up RI or important equipment
  • National public funding
  • Multinational/international public funding
Main sources of funding for operational costs
  • National public funding
  • Multinational/international public funding

SCIENTIFIC IMPACT

Main international structured co-operation research projects. Please highlighting the recognition of this Research Infrastructure at international level (give up to 5 examples from the last 5 years)
Success in cooperation is evident from a lot (about 20 per year) of common published scientific results in prominent astronomical journals.

RESEARCH SERVICES PROVIDED TO USERS AND RESEARCHERS

Research services provided to users and researchers
At the Astronomical Observatory in Belgrade, out of the 9 telescopes still operate five: Large refractor, Solar spectrograph, Zeiss Astrograph, Photovisual Refractor Askania and Meade reflector (D=40 cm). Large Refractor - equatorial Zeiss 650/10550 mm is equipped with CCD cameras for binary stars observations (position angle and angular distance), for occultation observation (solar system bodies with stars or other objects). Solar Spectrograph of Littrow type, collimator lens 200/9000 mm, attached to the Zeiss equatorial 200/3020 mm, two astro-cameras Tessar and Petzval 100/800 mm for guiding and projecting. Dispersion element is a Bausch and Lomb grating with 600 l/mm, achieving a spectral resolution 130000 in the fourth order. This instrument is equipped with an Apogee Alta 47 CCD camera (chip size: 1024x1024 pixels, pixel size:15x15 micro m). The spectrograph is capable to observe solar spectrum from about 480 nm 690 nm, covering about 0.3 nm spectral interval per chip. It works in two regimes: integrated solar flux (sun as a star) and in low special resolution (approximately about 20 arc seconds along the dispersion. Zeiss Astrograph, Photovisual Refractor Askania and Meade reflector are using for CCD observation of positions of solar system bodies and their occultations. Currently, the new Astronomical Station (AS) is equipped with the Astro Optik (D=60 cm) reflector, with BVRI and Stromgren photometrical devices and with a stellar spectrograph with six different grating (from 150 l/mm to 2400 l/m), which will be linked to the telescope by fiber optic device. We plan to start with observations at AS during next year, with 60 cm diameter telescope. It will be used for photometric measurements of celestial bodies (mainly variable stars) in two photometric systems: BVRI and Stromgren. We also plan to equip AS with a 1.5 m class telescope in next few years for photometric observations of faint objects and spectroscopic observations too.

Entry created by Davor Kozmus on November 23, 2012
Modified on November 23, 2012