Upon the slopes of central Greece, about 230 km from Athens and 30 km from historic Thermopylae, stands a humble, yet fully functional, planetarium and space observatory of unparalleled touristic and educational value to the area and beyond, according to greekreporter.com.
Certified by the European Space Agency (ESA) as the third-largest in Greece, the Kakoyianneio Star School, Planetarium, and Space Observatory hides in the dense forest that surrounds the small picturesque village of Ypati. Unlike the great prestigious Eugenides Foundation in Athens and Noisis in Thessaloniki, either located in the heart of Greece’s busiest metropolises, the Kakoyianneio’s idyllic countryside location grants it a distinct mystic and eclectic allure, at a fierce 480 meters above sea level.
The observatory’s “special location at the very center of mainland Greece makes Kakoyianneio easily accessible either from North or South. There is touristic infrastructure in the area which can accommodate a vast spectrum of visitors of all ages and budgets”, points out physicist Fanis Smanis.
From his position of chairman of the local union of amateur astronomers, SEAF, he is one of the team members who first envisioned the creation of the Kakoyianneio and saw the project through all its phases.
The institution is named after its benefactor, the late Stavros Kakoyiannis, a local architect who thrived in Athens but never forgot his place of origin. At an old age, he and his wife, who was also local, decided to donate their fortune to “a project that the people of their village would truly enjoy”.
Read the full report here.
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Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons License: CC-BY-SA Copyright: Bambosz
