Zimmerwald Observatory

The Observatory Room Forest is an observatory and satellite station in the district of Forest Room of the Swiss community forest (Canton Bern ). It is located on a hill about 10 kilometers south of Bern.

Plant

The Observatory Room Forest ( IAU code 026) is affiliated with the Astronomical Institute of the University of Bern in 1956 and started its operations. From 1956 to 1958 was the reflecting telescope - be the first astronomical observations - a Schmidt camera of 25 cm aperture and 104 cm focal length. Since 1959, a Cassegrain telescope stand (60 cm aperture, 13 m focal length ) and another Schmidt camera (40 cm aperture, 104 cm focal length ) are available. The vast majority of scientific observation work was carried out with the Schmidt camera, which was particularly well suited with an observation angle of six degrees of sky monitoring.

Since 1965, the Astronomical Institute of the University of Bern involved ( AIUB ) on the initiative of Prof. Max Schurer on the world of optical observations of active and passive geodetic satellites. In particular, the satellite GEOS, the Explorer program, PAGEOS and echo with the Schmidt camera were observed, and in-room forest was admitted to the worldwide network of satellite tracking stations. The accuracy of the station coordinates at that time was about five meters.

Mid-1970s, the labor-intensive analysis of photographic observations in favor of new methods of observation was postponed. 1971/72 academic staff collected the first experiences with a from the Institute of Applied Physics of the University of Bern (IAP ) built laser for the astronomical telescope. The dome for the new satellite station was built in 1974-1976 in collaboration with the IAP.

In the fiftieth year of founding (2005 ) was the inauguration of a new building for the IAP, which receives mainly experiments for the study of the atmosphere - the AIUB installed on the roof of this building tract a robotic telescope for optical satellite observations.

Tasks and observations

On March 2, 1957 Prof. Max Schurer discovered a supernova in the galaxy NGC 14ter size in 2841, followed by about 50 other Erstbeobachtungen of novae and supernovae, as well as numerous comets and minor planets. Exactly seven months later Professor Paul Wild first observed the comet 1957f and 1978 according to the named him short-period comet Wild 2 on 2 January 2004, the NASA Stardust spacecraft flew through the tail of this comet and has on January 15, 2006 particle samples for examination brought back to the earth.

By 1979, test measurements were carried out to satellites with an accuracy of about 80 cm and from 1981 to 1984, a further laser installed and improved optics, electronics and software sustainably with the ruby laser. Distances to geodetic satellites could now be measured with an accuracy of about eight centimeters. Since 1984, the satellite observation station works operationally, with participation in international projects, particularly MERIT ( 1983/1984 ) to determine the Earth's rotation, Wegener Medlas to explore the Geotektonik the Mediterranean, Crustal Dynamics Project (CDP) NASA global and regional geodynamics and IERS for measurement and calculation of earth rotation parameters and a reference system for astronomical and geographical position data.

Since the purchase of the first CCD camera in 1989 astrometric observations are carried out in Room Forest again. 1992 has intensified the cooperation with the Federal Office of Topography ( Swisstopo ), and Swisstopo also involved in the laser observations in Room Forest. Since 1995, the Geodesy and Geodynamics Laboratory ( GGL ) at ETH Zurich operates a gravimeter in Room Forest. In 1997 the inauguration of ZIMLAT, a one-meter telescope for astrometric and laser observations. Since the founding of the International Laser Ranging Service ( ILRS ) in 1998, rooms forest is one of about 200 worldwide monitoring stations.

In Room Forest ( LHN95 ) is set up, the Satellite Laser Ranging Geostation room for forest land surveying, together with the satellite station of the Astronomical Institute of the University of Bern since the introduction of the national height network.

The asteroid (1775 ) Room Forest, discovered on 13 May 1969 by the Swiss astronomer Paul Wild, was named after his observation location and the place where the professor wild some of the objects discovered by him was first observed in the asteroid belt.

Center for Orbit Determination in Europe

When the Bernese GPS Software prevailed worldwide, was established at the Astronomical Institute of the Center for Orbit Determination in Europe CODE, which among other things as GNSS Analysis Center different GPS analysis programs compares and contributes significantly to the GNSS train service of the IGS.

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