Can you visit Fan Mountain Observatory? No regular public access
Closed to the public except two public nights a year.
For telescope views near Fan Mountain Observatory, see the observatories open to the public and astronomy clubs nearby; clubs hold free public star parties.
What Fan Mountain Observatory observes
The list does not describe the instruments at Fan Mountain Observatory yet; the official site has them.
How dark the sky is at Fan Mountain Observatory
Fan Mountain Observatory has no Bortle rating in the list yet. The scale below shows what each class looks like.
Sky brightness and class come from the World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness (Falchi et al. 2016, CC BY-NC 4.0), with natural skyglow added, at the coordinates below. Research telescopes are often sited on mountains above the haze, so the real sky can be darker than the map suggests.
Fan Mountain Observatory among the observatories of Virginia
Green dots are observatories open to the public, blue dots research or private sites, squares dark sky places; select one for its page. See Virginia observatories for the full list.
The coordinates on this page point to Fan Mountain Observatory (Wikipedia): 37.878°N, 78.693°W.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Open the larger map · Directions. Mountain observatory roads are often gated after dark; go only on a scheduled public night.
Dark sky places, observatories and clubs near Fan Mountain Observatory
Nearest dark sky places
| Place | Where | Bortle | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| James River State Park | Virginia | 3 | 30 km (19 mi) |
| Holliday Lake State Park | Virginia | 3 | 54 km (33 mi) |
| Shenandoah National Park | Virginia | 3 | 75 km (47 mi) |
| Shenandoah National Park | Virginia | 3 | 75 km (47 mi) |
| Natural Bridge State Park | Virginia | 4 | 80 km (50 mi) |
| George Washington and Jefferson National Forest | Virginia | 3 | 81 km (50 mi) |
Other observatories open to the public within 150 km
- Leander McCormick ObservatoryCharlottesville, Virginia, 25 km (15 mi). Free Public Nights 1st and 3rd Friday monthly year-round (9-11 pm DST, 7-9 pm winter); free Eventbrite registration required
- Winfree ObservatoryLynchburg, Virginia, 65 km (40 mi). Randolph College star parties and public nights with Blue Ridge Astronomy Club (e.g. glow stick star party)
- Keeble ObservatoryAshland, Virginia, 108 km (67 mi). Free open viewing nights during the semester (e.g. Apr 9, 2026)
- Green Bank Telescope (GBT)Green Bank, West Virginia, 114 km (71 mi). Science Center open 9:30 am-5:30 pm (daily in summer, Thu-Mon in school year); guided bus tours of the GBT site $10
Astronomy clubs within 150 km
- Charlottesville Astronomical SocietyCharlottesville, Virginia, 23 km (14 mi). Meets 1st Wednesday monthly, 7-9 pm
- Blue Ridge Astronomy ClubForest, Virginia, 79 km (49 mi). Meets Usually 4th Tuesday monthly, local public library community room in Bedford/Forest/Lynchburg area (varies)
- Rappahannock Astronomy ClubFredericksburg, Virginia, 102 km (63 mi). Meets Monthly Wednesday, 7:30 pm
- Richmond Astronomical SocietyRichmond, Virginia, 113 km (70 mi). Meets 2nd Tuesday monthly, 7:30 pm
- Roanoke Valley Astronomical SocietyRoanoke, Virginia, 133 km (83 mi)
Star parties near Fan Mountain Observatory
| Star party | Near | Distance | Usual timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shenandoah Night Sky Festival | Luray, Virginia | 75 km (47 mi) | Late summer |
| Green Bank Star Quest | Green Bank, West Virginia | 116 km (72 mi) | Summer |
| Almost Heaven Star Party | Riverton, West Virginia | 117 km (73 mi) | New-moon weekend in August |
| Cherry Springs Star Party | Coudersport, Pennsylvania | 427 km (266 mi) | June, near new moon |
Planning a trip? Astrotourism in Virginia puts the dark sky places, observatories, clubs, star parties, planetariums and science centers of the state on one map, with the best night out worked out.
Fan Mountain Observatory record
Every value in the observatories dataset for Fan Mountain Observatory
| ID | 381 |
|---|---|
| Name | Fan Mountain Observatory |
| Address | Fan Mountain |
| City | Albemarle County |
| State | VA |
| Country | USA |
| Web | https://astronomy.as.virginia.edu/observatories |
| Public | n |
| Elevation | 566 |
| Lat | 37.87815 |
| Lon | -78.69303 |
| LatLonSpot | Fan Mountain Observatory (Wikipedia) |
| Status | Active |
| StatusNote | University of Virginia (MPC I18); used nightly by students and faculty |
| PublicNote | Closed to the public except two public nights a year |
| Sources | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fan_Mountain_Observatory |
From the site's observatories dataset (observatories_q426). Distances are computed from the coordinates.