----------------------------------- Alex Gaina 27 Iun 2008 11:44 ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY IN BELGRAD (ENGL. & CONITINUATI ----------------------------------- I have visited the Astronomical Observatory in Belgrad in 1995 by the way to Catania (Italy), where a Joint Astronomical Meeting (1995) of Italian astronomers and European Astronomers should be held. Due to a kind invitation by Milan Dimitrijevic, the director of the Observatory during that times, I have spent in Belgrade 1 week. We have discussed much about history of astronomy as well about the ways to improve the astronomical research in the East of Europe. We agreed, that the technical sitiation of the Observatories in ours Countries is very scarce, due to economic decline of ours countries. The situation in Serbia was worse, due to War. Meanwhile, I have found that due to investments of the Yugoslavian Government during socialist times, the Observatory in Belgrade was much better and larger, than the Astronomical Observatory of the State University of Moldova, which is placed near the villages of Ciuciuleni and Lozova. About 30 astronomers were engaged that times at the Astronomical Observatory in Belgrade and research in many areas were carried out, beggining with classical astronomy and finishing with theoretical astrophysics. Few old but very good Zeiss telescopes were in use at the Observatory. A rich library was placed just into the Main building of the Observatory. Computing facilities were also better, than in Chisinau, which does not existed at all in the Observatory site in Chisinau. The Observatory in Belgrade was placed in a very good from the ecological point of view place in a forest on a Hill. Due to this the atmosphere was clear and the conditions for observations were good. Another interesting astronomical site in Belgrade is the "Astronomical Drustvo Ruger Boscovic", which had that times an observatory in the center of the city of Belgrade on the Kalemegdan Hill on the border of Danube, just at the deversation of Sava River into Danube. During cultural program, I have visited the Museum of Nicolas Tesla with a very rich exhibition, which was placed in an interesting building in the center of the City. A precessing egg is one of the attractions of the Museum, but other technical inventions by Tesla were also of interest. A reception at the Unievrsity was held, where some of the astronomers from the Observatory participated: Slobodan Ninkovic, Istvan Vince, Miodrag Dacic and Luka Popovic.