Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 28, 2026

Xingming Observatory

Xingming Observatory is a private amateur astronomical observatory located in Gangou Township, Ürümqi, Xinjiang, China. The observatory was founded by amateur astronomer Gao Xing in 2007. The name "Xingming" is chosen partly to commemorate Zhou Xingming, a pioneer of amateur astronomy in China.

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Jul 28, 2026
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Xingming Observatory
Observatory codeC42, N86, N88, N89
LocationÜrümqi, People's Republic of China
Coordinates43°28′15.0″N 87°10′39.6″E / 43.470833°N 87.177667°E / 43.470833; 87.177667
Altitude2,080 m (6,820 ft)
Established2007
Websitexjltp.china-vo.org
Telescopes
NEXT
60cm f/8 Ritchey-Chrétien
HMT
50cm f/3.5 reflector
PSP
36cm f/6.9 Schmidt–Cassegrain
Map

Xingming Observatory (Chinese: 星明天文台; pinyin: xīng míng tiān wén tái) is a private amateur astronomical observatory located in Gangou Township, Ürümqi, Xinjiang, China. The observatory was founded by amateur astronomer Gao Xing in 2007. The name "Xingming" is chosen partly to commemorate Zhou Xingming, a pioneer of amateur astronomy in China.1

As of 2024, discoveries made by Xingming Observatory include 3 comets, 15 asteroids, 90 supernovae, 63 novae, and 111 dwarf novae.23

Research Programs

The observatory conducts research in time-domain astronomy and solar system observations in collaboration with professional astronomers. It hosts XOSS (Xingming Observatory Sky Survey), an amateur sky survey that searches for transients, asteroids and comets.4 Observational data from Xingming Observatory contributed to published astronomy research since 2011.5

Public Outreach

The observatory shares a number of telescopes with the public through the XPRO (Xingming Public Remote Observatory) program.6 It also operates PSP (Popular Supernova Project), a citizen science project for supernovae search, in collaboration with National Astronomical Observatories of China.78

References

References

  1. "星明介绍 - 星明天文台". Archived from the original on 2023-10-04. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  2. "Discoveries". Xingming Observatory. Archived from the original on 2023-10-04. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  3. Hongyu, Liang Jun (2023). "Amateur observatory makes its way to the big league". People's daily online. Archived from the original on 2023-04-14. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  4. "Research and Publications". Xingming Observatory. Archived from the original on 2023-10-04. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  5. "Publications (论文发表)". Xingming Observatory. Archived from the original on 2023-10-04. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
  6. "共享天文". 星明天文台. Archived from the original on 2023-06-01.
  7. "项目简介 | PSP". Archived from the original on 2023-09-30.
  8. Li, Fan, Gao, Cui (2016). "Popular Supernova Project: A Citizen Science Program Based on Amateur Astronomical Observations". INTED2016 Proceedings. Vol. 1. pp. 7561–7569. doi:10.21125/inted.2016.0780. ISBN 978-84-608-5617-7. {{cite book}}: |journal= ignored (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)