200 candles for the Royal Observatory of Belgium

8 June 2026 marks the 200^th anniversary of the Royal Observatory of Belgium. To mark the occasion, the institute organises a wide range of activities, with events scheduled right through to 2027. These are regularly updated on the Observatory’s 200^th anniversary website: 200year.observatory.be.  

An institute that has grown throughout 200 years

The Observatory was founded before the creation of the Belgian state, on the initiative of the mathematician, statistician and astronomer Adolphe Quetelet. Wishing to establish an observatory in a territory corresponding to present-day Belgium, he submitted a report to King William I of the Netherlands. The latter, having accepted Quetelet’s proposal, signed the decree establishing the Observatory on 8 June 1826.

Over the past 200 years, the institute has embraced scientific revolutions and expanded its expertise in Earth and space sciences. It also moved from Saint-Josse-ten-Noode to its current site in Uccle. Two other related institutes emerged from the Observatory: the Royal Meteorological Institute and the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy, both also located on the Uccle plateau.

Today, the Royal Observatory of Belgium has established itself on the international stage for its scientific expertise, particularly in astronomy, timekeeping, solar physics, seismology, gravimetry, geodesy using GNSS positioning satellites, planetary science and space weather.

To mark this anniversary, the Royal Observatory of Belgium organised a special event for distinguished guests, presenting them the planned activities as well as an exhibition of its antique books. It also invited the entire staff from the institutes on the Uccle site and their external sites to a social event featuring a barbecue and various games.

A range of activities until 2027

For the public, the Observatory, together with its Planetarium located at the Heysel site, plans a wide range of activities and publications to mark this jubilee year, including

• Open door days on the weekend of 26 and 27 September 2026, together with the Royal Meteorological Institute and the Royal Institute for Space Aeronomy of Belgium;
• Guided tours of the solar physics and space weather departement,
• Guided tours of the Humain site (located near Rochefort),
• An observation evening of the solar eclipse and the Perseid meteor shower in Humain on 12 August 2026,
• Street astronomy sessions,
• Concerts at the Planetarium in January 2027, with the Brussels Philharmonic,
• Lectures at the Palace of the Academies in French and Dutch, in collaboration with the Collège Belgique of the Académie royale de Belgique for the French-speaking part.

Also worth noting are lectures at the Planetarium, evening visits and observations through the large 45 cm telescope, the publication of a book to mark the Observatory’s 200^th anniversary, the release of podcasts, an exhibition at the Planetarium, an exhibition on the grids of the Uccle plateau, the issue of special stamps in collaboration with bpost, and the release of a special coin in collaboration with the National Geographic Institute and the National Bank of Belgium.

The calendar of events is regularly updated on the Observatory’s 200^th anniversary website, where you will also find anecdotes for every day of the year as well as walking routes in Brussels and in Belgium on the theme of astronomy.

Visit the website for the 200^th anniversary of the Royal Observatory of Belgium: 200year.observatory.be.