Updated: 3/18/2025
Astronomical Observatory Kherson State University
Geographical Coordinates: 46º 39' N, 32º 36' E
Telescope: A refractor with a 136 mm objective diameter and a focal length of 2.25 m, mounted on a German-type equatorial mount.
Main Areas of Work:
- Lectures, practical sessions, seminars, and laboratory classes in astronomy and astrophysics for students of the Faculty of Physics, Mathematics, and Computer Science.
- Research on objects closest to the Sun.
- Studies on current issues in the methodology of teaching astronomy in secondary and higher education institutions.
- Popular science lectures and guided tours for students and pupils from Kherson and the region.
Співробітники
- Kuzmenkov Serhii Heorhiiovych - Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Candidate of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Physics and Teaching Methods. He teaches the courses "Astronomy," "Astrophysics," and "Methods of Teaching Astronomy."
Weekly tours of the Kherson State University Observatory are held for students and teachers of secondary schools in Kherson and the surrounding region.
Professor Kuzmenkov begins the tour with a lecture on the history of telescopes and the celestial objects that can be observed through them. The lecture gradually transitions into a discussion, where Serhii Heorhiiovych eagerly answers questions from young astronomy enthusiasts. Afterward, students proceed to the observatory dome, where they see the telescope—a double astrograph with an achromatic objective lens of 15 cm in diameter and a focal length of 2.25 m, mounted on a German-type equatorial mount. The telescope is guided by a weight-driven clock mechanism, allowing observations even in the absence of electrical power.
A Historic Observatory
Kherson State University is one of the few higher education institutions in Ukraine with its own astronomical observatory. It was founded in the pre-war years at the Kherson State Pedagogical Institute named after N.K. Krupskaya.
The establishment of the laboratory was driven by an effort to improve the overall level of scientific research at the pedagogical institute. The astronomical observatory was renowned not only for being the only one in the Kherson region but also for its distinguished staff. It is associated with the names of prominent scientists. Before the war, it served as a center for scientific research and educational tours for students and teachers from schools and universities in Kherson and the surrounding area.
During the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the observatory was partially destroyed, and the telescope was relocated to Ivano-Frankivsk, where the temporarily displaced Kherson State University is currently based.
For any updates to this information, please contact Serhii Heorhiiovych Kuzmenkov at ✉️ .