<h3>It is yet to be built</h3>
<p>The page you link, is for the e.V. which is basically a German non-profit association or club for local astronomy-interested people. The goal appears to be to construct an educational facility and small observatory.</p>
<p>The most recent information I can find about this project is this <a href="https://kuenzelsau.de/site/Kuenzelsau/get/documents_E1594975485/kuenzelsau/Dateien/01_RathausUndBuergertheke/%C3%96ffentliche%20Bekanntmachungen/045-110-BP%20Erweiterung%20Wohnungsbau%20Schloss%20Stetten_AbgrenzungsplanII.pdf" rel="noreferrer">governmental land planning document</a> from mid 2022:</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/LhpSW09d.png" rel="noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/LhpSW09d.png" alt="Planning document image" /></a></p>
<p>The white building footprint on the right is labeled &quot;Sternwarte geplant und genehmigt&quot; which translates to &quot;Observatory planned and approved&quot;. If you look at the coordinates of where this is (49.2682, 9.7784) <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/LSLrrCfTnYZ7rDiCA" rel="noreferrer">via maps</a>, you can see that, as of 2024, it is an empty lot.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-08-14T09:27:00.147Z
2024-08-14T09:27:00.147Z
Dragongeek
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/V81PO.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/V81PO.jpg" alt="German astronaut Alexander Gerst" /></a></p>
<p>The answer to the 2018 Space SE question <a href="https://space.stackexchange.com/q/30415/12102">What is astronaut Alexander Gerst signaling with this K-shaped hand signal?</a> remains as elusive as his smile is enchanting.</p>
<p>One <a href="https://space.stackexchange.com/a/53823/12102">currently deleted answer</a> there mentions that in addition to being a graduate of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karlsruhe_Institute_of_Technology" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Karlsruhe Institute of Technology</a> he is also from the town of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%BCnzelsau" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Künzelsau</a>.</p>
<p>From the (Google translated from German) 21 May 2019
KLR news item <a href="https://www.dlr.de/de/aktuelles/nachrichten/2019/02/20190521_willkommen-zurueck-kuenzelsau-feiert-seinen-astronauten-alexander-gerst" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Welcome back: Künzelsau celebrates its astronaut Alexander Gerst</a> near the end:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Alexander Gerst is known to millions of people primarily through his activities on the social networks Twitter and Facebook , where he reports on his two missions into space and his commitment on Earth as &quot;Asto_Alex&quot;. The fascinating experiences of the famous Künzelsau resident have already been permanently recorded in the form of a space exhibition in the town hall of the town of around 15,000 inhabitants. <strong>A new observatory will ensure that the people of Künzelsau can continue to keep a close eye on the stars in the near future. The groundbreaking ceremony for the &quot;ESA Astronaut Alexander Gerst Observatory&quot; also took place together with the guests of honor on May 18, 2019.</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>A quick search for (the original German) &quot;ESA-Astronaut Alexander Gerst Sternwarte&quot; has led me to <a href="https://www.sternwarte-schloss-stetten.de/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.sternwarte-schloss-stetten.de/</a> but I'm not sure what that is.</p>
<p>So I'd like to ask:</p>
<p><strong>Question:</strong> Is there an &quot;ESA Astronaut Alexander Gerst Observatory&quot; in Künzelsau, Germany? If so, what's it like?</p>

<observatory><naming>
Is there an "ESA Astronaut Alexander Gerst Observatory" in Künzelsau, Germany? If so, what's it like?
uhoh
# Is there an "ESA Astronaut Alexander Gerst Observatory" in Künzelsau, Germany? If so, what's it like?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2024-08-14)

[![German astronaut Alexander Gerst](https://i.sstatic.net/V81PO.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/V81PO.jpg)

The answer to the 2018 Space SE question [What is astronaut Alexander Gerst signaling with this K-shaped hand signal?](https://space.stackexchange.com/q/30415/12102) remains as elusive as his smile is enchanting.

One [currently deleted answer](https://space.stackexchange.com/a/53823/12102) there mentions that in addition to being a graduate of [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karlsruhe_Institute_of_Technology) he is also from the town of [Künzelsau](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%BCnzelsau).

From the (Google translated from German) 21 May 2019
KLR news item [Welcome back: Künzelsau celebrates its astronaut Alexander Gerst](https://www.dlr.de/de/aktuelles/nachrichten/2019/02/20190521_willkommen-zurueck-kuenzelsau-feiert-seinen-astronauten-alexander-gerst) near the end:

> Alexander Gerst is known to millions of people primarily through his activities on the social networks Twitter and Facebook , where he reports on his two missions into space and his commitment on Earth as "Asto\_Alex". The fascinating experiences of the famous Künzelsau resident have already been permanently recorded in the form of a space exhibition in the town hall of the town of around 15,000 inhabitants. **A new observatory will ensure that the people of Künzelsau can continue to keep a close eye on the stars in the near future. The groundbreaking ceremony for the "ESA Astronaut Alexander Gerst Observatory" also took place together with the guests of honor on May 18, 2019.**

A quick search for (the original German) "ESA-Astronaut Alexander Gerst Sternwarte" has led me to <https://www.sternwarte-schloss-stetten.de/> but I'm not sure what that is.

So I'd like to ask:

**Question:** Is there an "ESA Astronaut Alexander Gerst Observatory" in Künzelsau, Germany? If so, what's it like?

**Tags:** observatory, naming

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2024-08-14. Score: 5

### It is yet to be built

The page you link, is for the e.V. which is basically a German non-profit association or club for local astronomy-interested people. The goal appears to be to construct an educational facility and small observatory.

The most recent information I can find about this project is this [governmental land planning document](https://kuenzelsau.de/site/Kuenzelsau/get/documents_E1594975485/kuenzelsau/Dateien/01_RathausUndBuergertheke/%C3%96ffentliche%20Bekanntmachungen/045-110-BP%20Erweiterung%20Wohnungsbau%20Schloss%20Stetten_AbgrenzungsplanII.pdf) from mid 2022:

[![Planning document image](https://i.sstatic.net/LhpSW09d.png)](https://i.sstatic.net/LhpSW09d.png)

The white building footprint on the right is labeled "Sternwarte geplant und genehmigt" which translates to "Observatory planned and approved". If you look at the coordinates of where this is (49.2682, 9.7784) [via maps](https://maps.app.goo.gl/LSLrrCfTnYZ7rDiCA), you can see that, as of 2024, it is an empty lot.


---

