Visit the birthplace of Greenwich Mean Time
Greenwich is known across the world as the birthplace of Greenwich Mean Time, a measure from which all global time zones are determined. It’s where the new millennium was officially welcomed in, and world events have been marked in time for over 130 years.
Stand on the prime meridian line
One of the most exciting parts of a visit to the Royal Observatory is the chance to stand on the prime meridian line. Here, you will quite literally be placing one foot in the eastern hemisphere, and one foot in the western!
See the Great Equatorial Telescope.
In the Meridian Courtyard you can also gaze upon the largest telescope in Britain and the seventh largest in the world, known as the Great Equatorial telescope. Its distinctive onion shape allows it to see almost any part of the night sky, and it has a huge 28-inch lens, weighing over 200lbs!
Nearby there is also a small summerhouse where you can see the intricate camera obscura projecting the Greenwich skyline.
Discover London’s original observatory
Flamsteed House was the original observatory building at Greenwich, designed by world-renowned architect Christopher Wren in 1675. Today it has been restored as an award-winning museum, dedicated to investigating the history of astronomy.
Visit the striking Octagon Room, designed for astronomers to sit and observe the sky for comets, eclipses and the movement of the planets. See the Astronomer Royal’s apartments, where astronomers, appointed by the Royal Family have lived and worked for hundreds of years. And outside the house, admire the iconic Time Ball, one of the world’s ‘time-keeping icons’.