The Association

A bit of history

The Urania Amateur Astronomers Association was officially established on November 18, 1989, with 11 founding members, and its first president, Gianni Peyrot, served until 2003. In 1990, the association purchased land in the Bric del Colletto area of Luserna San Giovanni, adjacent to the Beckwith School, which became the first official headquarters.

In 1994, the planetarium was installed, becoming the first in Piedmont to be used for educational purposes in visualizing the celestial sphere.

In the following years, a radio astronomy antenna with a diameter of 4 meters is installed. Under the presidency of Romano Vivaldi, the antenna is expanded to 8 meters, entirely built by the members. It remains the largest at the amateur level to this day.

In 1998, the tower with the fiberglass dome was built, along with the installation of optical instruments for the visualization and photography of deep-sky objects.

In 2011, following the untimely passing of Romano Vivaldi, Sergio Lera took over the presidency, the current president in office.