August 06, 2021
The Islamic Republic has inaugurated its first observatory high atop Mount Gargash near Kashan in northern Esfahan province.
The observatory is located at an altitude of 3,600 meters or 11,800 feet.
The telescope has a lens measuring 340 centimeters or 134 inches, which makes it the 42nd largest telescope in the world. It is the second largest in Asia, with only a 360-centimeter telescope in India being larger.
The largest telescope in the world is in Arizona with a lens measuring 1,190 centimeters or 469 inches.
The manager of the Iranian site, Habib Khosrowshahi, said, “I am proud to announce that the Iranian National Observatory has been made in Iran.” But it very unlikely that the lens could have been ground in Iran, as there are very few places where lenses of such a size can be made. But the announcement said nothing about the manufacture of the lens.
Of the telescopes larger than Iran’s, 19 are in the US, 12 in Chile and four in Spain, with one each in South Africa, Canada, Russia, China, Australia and India.
Observatories tend to be located on mountain tops far from cities because cities generate much light at night that interfere with the ability of the telescopes to see deep into space. Europe, therefore, has few observatories but many of the observatories in Chile were built and are operated by European states.