[2025 Nanjing Attraction] Travel Guide for Purple Mountain Observatory (Updated Apr)

The Purple Mountain Observatory was built in 1934. It is located on the third peak of Purple Mountain in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province. It is the former site of the "National Purple Mountain Observatory". It is known as the cradle of modern Chinese astronomy. It is the main place for scientific research, observation, and popular science in the history of the Purple Mountain Observatory. It has many important astronomical heritages. Some areas have been opened up as public popular science service areas. It records the history of the development of modern Chinese astronomy and inherits the spirit of scientific exploration. It is also a famous scenic tourist attraction in Nanjing. The Purple Mountain Observatory is a national popular science education base, a national key cultural relic protection unit, and one of the first ten science and technology tourism bases in China. Meteorite Museum Entering the gate of the Attraction and going up the steps is the meteorite exhibition hall, which has an exhibition area of about 200 square meters and displays more than 20 kinds of precious meteorites. Visitors can get close to alien visitors - meteorites, and learn and understand meteorite knowledge. Former Observatory Site The main building of the observatory, also known as the Big Observatory or the Big Equatorial Mount Room, is a hybrid of Chinese and Western designs designed in the early days of the observatory. The dome has distinct Western features, and the main gate is in the form of an archway covered with glazed tiles. The word "Observatory" is inscribed on a plaque in the middle. It was laid on the winter solstice on December 22, 1933, and houses a 600mm reflecting large equatorial mount, which was the largest telescope in the Far East at the time. Ancient astronomical instruments display area The ancient astronomical instrument display area is the highlight of the observatory. There is a celestial globe, also known as the armillary sphere, which is similar to a globe and is inlaid with stars. It was copied by the Qing government in 1903; there are armillary spheres and simple spheres that look like the circular orbits of several planets, both of which were cast during the Zhengtong period of the Ming Dynasty; there is a gnomon that measures time by the shadow of the sun; and there is also a horizontal theodolite that measures coordinates and was copied by the Qing government in the early 20th century. Meridian Room The Meridian Room is the first building built at the Purple Mountain Observatory. It is covered with a square glass ceiling and windows. The foundation stone was laid on June 21, 1932, the summer solstice. The foundation stone inscription was written by Cai Yuanpei. The built-in meridian instrument is an astronomical measuring instrument for observing the time when stars pass through the zenith. The current Meridian Room also displays some timekeeping-related exhibits, such as a copper kettle clepsydra, a scale clepsydra, and a modern marine clock. Tianbao Castle Ruins Tianbao City is a fortress built by the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and it no longer has the charm of the past. There is a dome observation room on the top of the mountain. Climbing to the platform on the roof, you can overlook Nanjing City and look west to Xuanwu Lake. The view of the observatory is also very good, suitable for taking pictures, and you can take in more observatory buildings. The Attraction also has graphic exhibitions and special exhibitions. The graphic exhibitions show the frontiers, major achievements and important history of Purple Mountain Observatory's scientific research, and use astronomical photography pictures, real objects and models to show the basic knowledge of astronomy. The special exhibition is currently an exhibition of original astronomical oil paintings.