Observatories that I have visited:
Pula Naval Observatory, Croatia 2022

The Naval Observatory at Pula

At our travel in Croatia 2022 we found three astronomy related things, this is about the observatory in the city Pula at Croatia. If you find it interesting about our travel along the coast in Croatia you can read the full story here: Croatia 2022 (during work).

We planned to visit this observatory already before we started our travel.

Examples how to walk to the Naval Observatory from Sergius gate:

It's only 500 meters from the Sergius gate in old center of Pula. We took a different walk compare what the map shows. From old city we take the street Laginjina ul and cross the street Dobrilina ul to these stairs with the name Stube Jurine i Franine.

At top of the stairs a look back from where we came, the old city in the background.

Walk the last meters to the park where the observatory is placed, on the top of a hill. The yellow building we see behind the trees is the observatory. This is the Montezaro Park.

More information about the Monte Zaro park:

• https://www.pulainfo.hr/ where/ monte-zaro (Monte Zaro park, Pula)

We walk around the park to come in from the Western direction. This observatory was built 1869 and in that time this land belonged to Austria and later by the Italy, Yugoslavia and now Croatia. It has always been an important harbor to the Mediterranean Sea.

It looked very closed and we found, as usual, it was closed for the season. They closed it already August 31, in that time we haven't even started our astronomy season in Sweden.

Maybe the main entrance.

It says: "Zvjezdarnica Astronomsko drustvo 'Istra' Pula." www.adip.hr. I think it's an Amateur Astronomy Club.

When I translate the information partly I got this:
They start to restore this observatory 1979 and it was in a very bad condition. In the beginning the dome wasn't restored and they did the observations from the terrace. It wasn't until 1999 the dome was restored. It was registered in 1983 as a cultural monument.

Today they have a Celestron 11" Schmidt Cassegrain telescope but I couldn't find anything what instruments there were here from the beginning.

The dome to the left, to the right is the top of the meridian observatory. That telescope only looks along the meridian and no need to rotate it sideways, no rotating dome, it's fixed.

We walk to the Southern side of the observatory. Somewhere I read that it was heavily damaged during a war, no information of which war.

A window of the Southern wall, does it have a function for astronomy observations, or ? At the observatory at Stockholm they have a lot of windows around the tower to put through different instruments.

The Eastern wall, a door into the meridian observatory. That instrument was important when making calendars and to get correct time for navigation. The name of the observatory is Pula Naval Observatory to understand the importance of navigation.

In front of the wall is a ruin of another ground or wall, could it be some older part of the observatory ?

The sign say:
"Klimatoloska Postaja Pula".
Maybe weather station ? It was one weather station in front of the observatory.

The observatory has the park around the building with old buildings surrounded it in the background.

We now have come to the Northern wall of the observatory.

From here the observatory on top of the building is easier to see with its dome on top.

The meridian observatory with its lid that moves sideways when it opens.

More stones that maybe belonged to an earlier observatory building.

What the purpose of the two circular holes in the wall are for I don't understand.

Back to the Western wall.

West of the observatory in the same Montezaro park is this beautiful place with a fountain and a view over the harbor.

So many question I have now, I have written to the astronomy club and ask if they can help me. I come back with more information if I get some.

Follow this link if you want to know more about the Pula Naval Observatory:

• https://www.istra.hr/ en/ experience/ green-istria/ astronomy/ pula-observatory (Pula Observatory)