Astronomy in Rio de Janeiro

The Planetarium
Rio de Janeiro is famous for many things: Sunshine, beaches, beautiful people and…….. astronomy! In a recent trip to the “Cidade Maravilhosa” I took a swerve off the tourist trail to check out what is going on just south of the equator, at the Rio Planetarium and the Rio Federal University’s Observatory.

At 22.9° south there is view of both the Northern and Southern hemisphere depending on the time of year, though to a northerner like myself it’s all upside down!

The day to visit the Planetarium is Wednesday as they have a public observing session that starts at 18:00. You will find the Planetarium in Gávea behind Leblon in the South Zone of the city. It is walking distance from Antero de Quental / Leblon Metro station and has its own bus stop for numbers 157, 401, 432, 435, 583 and 775D. Or take a taxi, Rio has Uber. There is also a carpark at the front where you will find two restaurants and a garden, all within the planetarium complex.

Once inside you are confronted with 3 floors of astro and space exhibition behind which is the Planetarium with the 4 floor the outside observing deck for telescopes.

The fun stuff is a star ship where you can sit in the pilot’s seat and navigate Captain Kirk like around the galaxy. There’s lots of touch screen panels for kids where they discover different astronomical phenomenon.

On the 2nd floor there is an extensive meteorite collection of – mostly fallen in Brazil – meteorites (which if you’re a meteorite hunter you’ll find amazing); an Apollo exhibition and the best view of planets’ models.The 3rd floor is given over to an exhibition of the big telescopes that operate in Chile.

The Planetarium is powered by a Carl Zeiss Universarium, so even if you don’t understand Portuguese you can still follow the light show.

The observing session starts with a planetarium lecture on what objects are visible that evening, followed by a question and answer session. Everyone then moves to the 4th floor outside. The observing deck has two domes and plenty of space for additional set ups. The night I was there we had a look at Jupiter and Mars and the lead astronomer gave us a green laser tour of the visible constellations. All in all it’s a great afternoon / evening out and a little bit of astronomy heaven that astro fans can enjoy.

As you finish at the planetarium in the evening you are at the perfect time to take a trip to Academia da Cachaça – a 16 minute walk from the Planetarium – to sample Brazil’s national drink. Academia da Cachaça is famous for stocking one of the largest selections of Cachaça available.

The University Observatory
Valongo Observatory is the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro’s dedicated astronomy facility. You will find it at the top of the hill on Ladeira do Pedro Antônio in Centro. It’s a short walk from any of many public transport stops in Centro or you can take a taxi.

There is a public observing session also every Wednesday at sunset. It’s a more technical presentation than the planetarium as it’s staffed by professional and academic astronomers. There is a nice observing deck in the grounds with a Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope complete with turret. Inside the dome is a real surprise! A 150mm Zeiss Coudé. One of the few in the world available to the public, like you needed another reason to visit Rio! The view of Rio from Valongo Observatory is stunning, as you can see from the pictures.

You can visit Rio de Janeiro at any time of year. Unless you are specifically interested in carnival or the New Year celebrations the best time to go is outside of these festivals. You can fly direct to Rio Galeão international airport from across Latin America, selected west European capitals and in the USA from New York, Miami, Atlanta, Dallas and Houston. Plus Dubai in the Middle East. Transferring through Sao Paulo opens up many more routes.

I’d like to thank nPAE Precision Astro Engineering for giving me the opportunity to take this trip!

Brazil has two telescope manufactures Sandro Coletti and Telescopios Matao. Check them out here:
https://www.facebook.com/telescopioscoletti/
https://telescopiosmatao.com/

Andrew Smith
nPAE Precision Astro Engineering