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Walk around the Observatory (There is the possibility to shorten the route at the Mahsa Amini garden)

Places of interest

- At the Observatory:

At the Observatory itself you can see sculptures of the Earth and the Moon. These are part of a nationwide model of the solar system on a scale of 1/40,000. The sizes and distances are a true representation of those of the various celestial bodies in our solar system. This scale model was designed by Tim Roosen and the sculptures were placed at the observatory in 2004 and have been here for more than 20 years!

- Statue of King Baudouin on the Charles Lagrange square:

The statur of King Baudouin (1930-1993) by the Ukkel sculptress Elisabeth Barmarin has been there since 1996. Throughout his life, King Baudouin had a great interest in astronomy and visited the Observatory regularly. In 1980, King Baudouin accepted the honorary chairmanship of the oldest astronomical association in Belgium, the Sociéte belge d'Astronomie (The Belgian Astronomical Society). The statue is oriented in such that it looks as if the king is about to walk into the Observatory.

The statue can also serves as a vertical gnomon. When the shadow of the king falls in the middle of the bluestone tiles, true noon has arrived in Ukkel.

Charles Lagrange (1851-1932), after whom the square is named, was an astronomer and professor at the Royal Military School and he was director of the scientific headquarters of the Royal Academy and co-founded the journal Ciel et Terre of the Belgian Astronomical Society.

In 1882 he traveled with Louis and Joseph Niesten to Santiago in Chile to observe the transit of Venus.

In 1878, he was appointed assistant astronomer at the Observatory, where he would construct the meridian between 1898 and 1900. During this period, he was also Director of the Astronomy Service after the Meteorology Service had split off. As Director of the Astronomy Service, Lagrange was supervised by administrator-inspector Edouard Goedseels, with whom he had a tense relationship. Due to this difficult working relationship, Lagrange resigned in 1900.

- Hamoirlaan 28b:

The amateur astronomer and nature lover Paul Dupont (1878-1949) used to live here. He was president of the Belgian Astronomy Society from 1937 to 1939.

He built this house in 1923 with a library, laboratory and an observatory dome with a diameter of 5.75 m. In this dome was a 16 cm refractor of the brand Bardou from Paris placed on an equatorial mount. There also was a 13 cm refractor with which photographs could be taken. In addition, there was a small, 3.5 cm, transit instrument in the garden to synchronize the clock time with the Sidereal Time. He made recordings of the annular eclipse of April 17, 1912 which are among the best there are.

- Linkebeek (mural): At the intersection of the Alsembergsesteenweg and the Rue de Linkebeek you can admire a beautiful mural of the Observatory.

- Cemetery of the Dieweg:

This cemetery contains the grave of Hergé who also lived in this street. Hergé had close ties with the Observatory and visited it often. We see this special relationship return in the comic book 'The Shooting Star' in which Tintin goes to the Observatory for advice.

- Geodetic point:

Underneath the railway bridge (middle pillar) on the Sint-Jobsteenweg we find an altimetric point (south side, 105 cm from the right side, 47 cm above the ground). Determining the shape and size of the earth are among the primary goals of geodesy. By modeling the earth, one can describe the position of all points on its surface using geographical coordinates. Can you find the point? Look at the photo to know what to look for.