History

Gornergrat, due to its unique location in an unspoiled high alpine environment at 3150m above sea level, the year-round accessibility via the Gornergrat Bahn, and the excellent infrastructure, provides unequalled conditions for successful research in astronomy and astrophysics.

The Conquest of the Alpine Area

Horace Bénédict de Saussure. (Les Alpinistes célèbres, Henry de Ségogne, Editions Mazenod 1956)

For a long time, the alpine area was not a place to go for the majority of people. It was considered as hostile to humans, and proper equipment, which would have been necessary to explore and to survive the alpine environment, was not yet available. Generally, the 1787 ascent of Mont Blanc by Horace Bénédict de Saussure is considered as the beginning of the touristic and scientific exploration of the Alps (see Figure). The volume of his meteorological, physical and geological observations made de Saussure a pioneer of alpine research with tremendous impact. But it was only in the middle of the 19th century that scientists finally conquered the alpine area. From 1838-1841, following the example of de Saussure, Louis Agassiz, who later became Professor at Harvard University in the USA, and who was the father of the then highly controversial glacial theory, led a scientific expedition to explore the glaciers of the river Aare and in the Jungfrau region. Working and living conditions were harsh.

The Gornergrat Bahn and the Kulmhotel

Kulmhotel Gornergrat at the beginning of the 20^th century

The extensive and successful scientific activity at Gornergrat is a direct consequence of the easy access offered by the Gornergrat Bahn.

On August 20, 1898, after two years of construction, the railway to Gornergrat went into operation. It was the first electric cogwheel railway in Switzerland. Thanks to a spirit of innovation and pioneering, a unique tourist attraction was established. The mysterious world of the Alps was made accessible to all.

As early as 1896, Joseph Perren and Joseph Biner built at Gornergrat the earlier Hotel Belvédère, which they handed over to the community of Zermatt ready to use for the price of 23’000 Swiss francs. Two years later, when the cog railway reached the Gornergrat for the first time, tourist traffic increased rapidly. The community of Zermatt quickly realized the significance of Gornergrat as a tourist destination, and built the Kulmhotel Gornergrat over a period of ten years, from 1897 to 1907. Construction costs at that time were about half a million Swiss francs.

The High Altitude Research Station Gornergrat

Due to high altitude of 3135m asl, the clean, dry air, and the favorable meteorological conditions, Gornergrat is an ideal site for astronomical observations. For a short time after 1950, when astronomical research in Switzerland was intensified, plans even existed to construct a national observatory. However, these plans were not pursued because in 1981 Switzerland joined the organization of the European Southern Observatory (ESO).

Kulmhotel Gornergrat with the two astronomical cupola in 1970’s.

The astronomical observatories at Gornergrat were installed in the late 1960’s in the two towers of the Kulmhotel Gornergrat. The rooms are leased from the Burgergemeinde Zermatt which itself is a member of the Foundation HFSJG. The Gornergrat North includes a 7.5 m cupola and a laboratory. The Observatory Gornergrat South was rented to the University of Cologne, Germany, from 1984-2010. It includes a 7.5 m cupola, a computer room, a workshop, a bedroom, a kitchen, and a bathroom. The instrument installed by the ‘I. Physikalisches Institut der Universität zu Köln’ was a high-tech 3 m radio telescope.

Both observatories are open for guest researchers.

In addition to the two observatories, the Physikalisches Institut of the University of Bern operated from 1998 until 2017 a laboratory container at the Belvedere terrace for measurements of solar neutrons. This apparatus has been installed in collaboration with the Solar-Terrestrial Environment Laboratory of the Nagoya University, Japan, and was the European cornerstone of a worldwide network of solar neutron detectors.

Highlights of past research