120th anniversary of the founding of Engelhardt Astronomical Observatory
Celebratory events took place on the Observatory premises in a suburb of Kazan on 25 September.
The ceremony featured State Counsellor of Tatarstan Mintimer Shaimiev, Rector Ilshat Gafurov, Deputy Minister of Finance of Russia Aleksey Lavrov, representatives of the Government of Tatarstan, veterans of the Russian space industry, educators, students and schoolchildren.
In his greeting, Rector Gafurov touched on the history of astronomy at Kazan University. Our department of astronomy was founded in 1810 by Joseph Johann von Littrow and became the first such facility in the Russian Empire. In 1814, an inner-city observatory (currently part of KFU’s central campus) was built. Because of the steady growth of the city of Kazan, high-quality astronomical observations there became unfeasible, and a decision was made to construct a new observatory in the suburbs – which came to fruition in 1901.
Apart from those facilities, KFU also has an astronomical station in the North Caucasus (opened in 1976) and a telescope stationed at the Turkish National Observatory.
After that, the Rector addressed the students, who arrived to celebrate an event titled Equinox, in honor of the autumn equinox which had taken place just two days prior. Coincidentally, “equinox” is also a colloquial term in Russia for the middle point in a student’s life – which historically was after two and a half years of studies (stemming from the typical five-year programs in Soviet Union and Russia) and now falls on the break between sophomore and junior years for undergraduate students.
State Counsellor Shaimiev noted that a bright future is impossible without respect for history, for distinguished persons, and for scientific heritage.
“Today, you opened a monument to astronomer, activist, philanthropist Vasily Engelhardt and his friend, professor and rector of Kazan University Dmitry Dubyago. Their wonderful longtime friendship is a good example of devotion to science, education and culture,” he said.
In conclusion, awards from the Government of Tatarstan and Tatarstan’s Revival Foundation were given away. Furthermore, special commemorative medals of the 60th anniversary of the first spaceflight were awarded to Dr. Gafurov, Counsellor Shaimiev, Vice-Rector for Research Dmitry Tayursky, and Vice-Rector for Construction and Maintenance Lenar Safiullin.
The monument was not the only thing unveiled on Saturday. Astropark, a multifunctional exhibition and education center, was also shown to the public. It’s targeted at all age groups.
For the younger audience, a musical program, a drone racing competition, a film showing, and some other events were organized.
In 2020, Engelhardt Astronomical Observatory, located 30 km to north of Kazan city center, was included in UNESCO Tentative Lists and is expected to become a world heritage site in the near future.
Source text: Leisan Zakirova
Photos: Kseniya Bogdanova
Translation: Yury Nurmeev