title: Pico dos Dias Observatory
text: # Pico dos Dias Observatory
  
  The Pico dos Dias Observatory (Portuguese: Observatório Pico dos Dias (OPD)) is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by the National Astrophysical Laboratory of Brazil (Portuguese: Laboratório Nacional de Astrofísica (LNA)). It is located in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, 37 kilometers (23 mi) from the city of Itajubá.
  
  ## Telescopes
  
  * A 1.6 m (63 in) Cassegrain reflector built by Perkin-Elmer first became operational in 1981.
  * A 0.6 m (24 in) Ritchey-Chrétien telescope built by Boller & Chivens and installed in 1992 is jointly used by LNA and the University of São Paulo.
  * A 0.6 m (24 in) Cassegrain reflector built by Zeiss Jena was purchased in the 1960s through coffee trade with East Germany. It was installed in 1983.
  
  ### ASPOS OKP
  
  In April 2017, Russia's space agency, Roscosmos, opened the first Automated Warning System on Hazardous Situations in Outer Space (ASPOS OKP) at Pico dos Dias. There will be another three stations in the system.
  
  