Paranal Observatory

Paranal Observatory is an astronomical observatory operated by the . It is located in the of Northern on at 2,635 m altitude, 120 km south of .
  • Type: Research institute
  • Description: astronomical observatory in the Atacama Desert
  • Also known as: ESO’s Paranal Observatory”, “VLT”, and “X-Shooter

Places of Interest Nearby

Highlights include Cerro Paranal and ESO Hotel.

Peak
is a mountain in the of northern and is the home of the Paranal Observatory. Prior to the construction of the observatory, the summit was a horizontal control point with an elevation of 2,664 m; now it is 2,635 m above sea level.

Hotel building
at Cerro Paranal is the accommodation for Paranal Observatory in Chile since 2002. It is mainly used for the ESO scientists and engineers who work there on a roster system. is situated 2 km southeast of Paranal Observatory.

Paranal Observatory

Latitude
-24.62752° or 24° 37′ 39″ south
Longitude
-70.40436° or 70° 24′ 16″ west
Operator
European Southern Observatory (ESO)
Open location code
577F9HCW+X7
Open­Street­Map ID
way 27767327
Open­Street­Map feature
amenity=­research_institute
Open­Street­Map feature
man_made=­observatory
Open­Street­Map feature
tourism=­attraction
Wiki­data ID
Q10914152
This page is based on OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons, and Wikipedia.
We’d love your help improving our open data sources. Thank you for contributing.

Satellite Map

Discover Paranal Observatory from above in high-definition satellite imagery.

In Other Languages

From Afrikaans to Western Panjabi—“Paranal Observatory” goes by many names.
  • Afrikaans: Paranal-sterrewag
  • Arabic: مرصد بارانال
  • Armenian: Պարանալի աստղադիտարան
  • Basque: Paranal Behatokia
  • Basque: Paranalgo Behatokia
  • Belarusian: абсэрваторыя Параналь
  • Belarusian: Паранальская абсэрваторыя
  • Catalan: Observatori Paranal
  • Central Kurdish: ڕوانگەی پاراناڵ
  • Chinese: 帕拉纳尔天文台
  • Czech: Observatoř Paranal
  • Dutch: Paranal-observatorium
  • Egyptian Arabic: مرصد بارانال
  • Estonian: Paranali observatoorium
  • Finnish: Paranalin observatorio
  • French: Observatoire du Cerro Paranal
  • German: Paranal-Observatorium
  • Greek: Αστεροσκοπείο Παρανάλ
  • Indonesian: Observatorium Paranal
  • Irish: Réadlann Paranal
  • Italian: osservatorio del Paranal
  • Italian: Osservatorio del Paranal
  • Japanese: パラナル天文台
  • Korean: 파라날 천문대
  • Luxembourgish: Paranal-Observatoire
  • Macedonian: Параналска опсерваторија
  • Mingrelian: პარანალიშ ობსერვატორია
  • Norwegian Bokmål: Paranal-observatoriet
  • Norwegian: Paranal-observatoriet
  • Persian: رصدخانه پارانال
  • Polish: Obserwatorium Paranal
  • Portuguese: Observatório Paranal
  • Romanian: Observatorul Paranal
  • Russian: Паранальская обсерватория
  • Slovenian: Observatorij Paranal
  • Spanish: Observatorio Paranal de la ESO
  • Spanish: Observatorio Paranal
  • Swedish: Paranalobservatoriet
  • Turkish: Paranal Gözlemevi
  • Ukrainian: Обсерваторія Паранал
  • Urdu: پارانل رصد گاہ
  • Vietnamese: Đài thiên văn Paranal
  • Western Panjabi: پارانل رصد گاہ

Notable Places Nearby

Highlights include Star Track Trailhead and Cerro Paranal Airport.

Nearby Places

Explore places such as ESPRESSO and NAOMI.

Chile: Must-Visit Destinations

Delve into Central Chile, Santiago, Valparaíso, and Concepción.

Curious Research Institutes to Discover

Uncover intriguing research institutes from every corner of the globe.