Roque de los Muchachos Observatory

Roque de los Muchachos Observatory

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Roque de los Muchachos Observatory

Cycling

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Hiking

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Location: Garafía, Isla De La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain

Tips

November 9, 2017

Cycling

Arrived at the top of the Roque de los Muchachos, you will notice the many telescopes. Together with the telescopes on the Teide they form the European Northern Observatory. Since the island is sparsely populated and the summit is almost always above the clouds, it offers excellent conditions for observing the cosmos.

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Simon Alvarez Belon

May 22, 2023

Cycling

Built in 1985, these telescopes are among the largest in the world. It was chosen to build them here given the particular climate that occurs. In this area there are clouds between 1,000 and 2,000 meters high, and since the observatory is at 2,400 meters, these clouds act as a mirror for light pollution, thus allowing you to enjoy unique conditions for stargazing.

Thanks to the new generation of Cherenknov Telescopes and other technological advances that are present in this observatory, the deepest galaxy in the universe that we have been able to observe has been found here.

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Frank Liebau

January 10, 2026

Cycling

At the edge of the caldera, at an altitude of approximately 2,400 meters, a number of telescopes are lined up at Roque de los Muchachos: optical and infrared night-vision telescopes, solar telescopes, and instruments for high-energy astrophysics. We took part in a guided tour and highly recommend it. It's essential to book online in advance from home; spontaneous bookings on-site are usually not possible.

Links:

* de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roque-de-los-Muchachos-Observatorium

* de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_der_gr%C3%B6%C3%9Ften_optischen_Teleskope

* iac.es/es/observatorios-de-canarias/observatorio-del-roque-de-los-muchachos/visitas

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