Quito Astronomical Observatory, Astronomical observatory in Parque La Alameda, Ecuador.

The Quito Astronomical Observatory is a two-story yellow building in Parque La Alameda, completed in 1878 to plans by first director Juan Bautista Menten and modeled on the Observatory of Bonn. Its symmetric facade has a central arched entrance inscribed "OBSERVATORIO ASTRONOMICO" above a clock face, and a cylindrical grey metal dome on a narrow base tops the projecting central section. Inside, the 24 cm Merz equatorial telescope of 1875 sits under the main dome.

The facility was founded in 1873 and ranked among the first research centers of its kind in South America during that era. Its establishment showed the city's commitment to modern science at a time when such work was rare in the region.

The observatory's astronomical museum displays the instruments used by the first astronomers of Ecuador, including the 24 cm Merz equatorial telescope made in Munich in 1875. The French Geodesic Mission II worked in these facilities between 1902 and 1914, and the first seismographs in Ecuador were installed here.

Visitors can explore the facility through guided tours offered by staff and also try night telescope observations if weather permits. The building sits centrally in the park with access via the main avenue and offers courses for those wanting to learn more about astronomy.

The main dome holds the 24 cm Merz equatorial telescope, made in Munich in 1875 and still used for public night observations. The collection also keeps a refracting telescope and a meridian circle built by Repsold, part of a 19th-century instrument set.