On Tuesday 23 March 2021, the Scientific Instrument Commission (SIC) will host a virtual visit to the Museum of Palermo Astronomical Observatory (Museo della Specola di Palermo) at 16:30-17:30 Central European Time (CET) (UTC+1), starting at 15.30 GMT, 10:30 EST and 09:30 CST respectively.

Ileana Chinnici will share with us a selection of interesting items from the collection, followed by a question and answer session.

The Museo della Specola in Palermo is part of the Palermo Astronomical Observatory, one of the headquarters of the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics (INAF), and houses a valuable collection of scientific instruments from the 18th and 19th centuries. It is located in the same site where, in 1790, Father Giuseppe Piazzi founded the Observatory and, in 1801, discovered the first asteroid (now dwarf planet) Ceres. The collection includes rare and unique items (for instance, the Ramsden Circle) made by the best European workshops; it consists of more than one hundred instruments of Astronomy, Chronometry, Meteorology, Seismology, Spectroscopy, Physics, Topography, Geomagnetism and some precious globes. Together with the historical library and archive, the museum preserves the heritage deriving from the many centuries of scientific life and research undertaken at Palermo Observatory, which is still in use today as a research institution.

Find out more online (in Italian):
http://www.astropa.inaf.it/museodellaspecola/
http://starlod.astropa.inaf.it/
https://www.beniculturali.inaf.it/musei/palermo/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Specola.Palermo