History of the Observatory

This only changed when Egon von Oppolzer was appointed Professor of Astronomy at Innsbruck University in 1901. Oppolzer was born in Vienna in 1869, as the son of the famous astronomer Theodor von Oppolzer. As was not unusual at the time, the son followed in his father's footsteps. After his studies in Vienna and Munich, Egon von Oppolzer worked at the most modern observatories in Europe. It was probably at this stage of his life that he made the decision to found an observatory according to his own plans and with his own resources.

Oppolzer had already received an offer for an associate professorship at the German University in Prague before 1901. He declined the Prague offer, stating: "I prefer to be appointed in Innsbruck, primarily because this place seems more suitable to me." In his opinion, the city in the middle of the mountains offered everything needed to conduct astronomical research: There was a university, enough space for an observatory, but above all clear air and dark nights.

Most observatories at the time were different. They were located in the middle of large cities that "polluted" their surroundings with light. This light illuminated the night sky and thus reduced the quality of the results of night-time observations. In addition to the light, the vibrations caused by road traffic, which even continued at night in big cities, were also a problem for the sensitive instruments. Clear air and dark nights, on the other hand, were no problem in "provincial" Innsbruck.

Shortly after his arrival in 1902, Egon von Oppolzer bought a large patch of land on what was then the outskirts of Innsbruck. There was already a nice villa at this place, in which the astronomer took up residence. In 1904, he built the observatory in the garden, which he financed with the sale of his valuable inherited collection of paintings; the Oppolzer family had acquired a certain amount of wealth in the 19th century.

The observatory itself was built using the most modern materials. The walls were made of corrugated iron and glass, the supporting framework of reinforced concrete and the roof truss of wood. This "lightweight construction" made it possible to eliminate a number of problems that existed at many other observatories. Most observatories of the time had another function to fulfill in addition to their actual task of observing the stars: Representation. This is why observatories, like the one in Vienna, were truly magnificent buildings with meter-thick walls and beautifully decorated facades. However, this was a disadvantage for astronomical observation. In order to obtain an accurate and undistorted image, a telescope and its surroundings must have the same temperature as the air outside the observatory. The evening temperature equalization at the beginning of each observation night should therefore take place quickly - but the thicker the walls, the longer this process takes. This was not a problem in Innsbruck, as the thin walls made of corrugated iron and glass hardly stored any heat or cold. This meant that temperatures equalized quickly and the nights could be used for observations in an optimal way.

The actual construction work lasted an entire year. In 1904, the observatory was ready and Oppolzer began setting up his instruments. During the relatively short construction period, two buildings were erected, a larger main building with two floors and a small, free-standing dome. Three telescopes were set up on the second floor of the main building, the so-called meridian room, and one in the free-standing dome. All the instruments stand on massive concrete pillars. These pillars reach several meters into the ground and are not connected to the rest of the building.

This construction method was chosen so that all the telescopes could be set up in a vibration-decoupled manner, so that no disturbing vibrations would reduce the accuracy of the telescopes' measurements. Once construction was complete, Egon von Oppolzer began to put his observatory into operation. However, scientific observations were not yet possible. A number of minor defects had to be remedied, however, which also happens with new buildings today. Even more important was the alignment of the telescopes, as only the smallest inaccuracies can lead to major errors in the results. As many of the telescopes were new in design and nobody really knew exactly how they worked, this process took a long time.

In addition to the work at his observatory, Oppolzer was always keen to establish a permanent link between his observatory and the University of Innsbruck. However, he was not to succeed in this endeavor during his lifetime. Several attempts failed, always - as is often the case today - due to a lack of funding. It was not until two years after Oppolzer's death - he died in the summer of 1907 from blood poisoning contracted while gardening - that an agreement was reached between his heirs and the Austrian state: in 1909, the observatory changed name and since then is known as the Innsbruck Observatory.