NOAK Observatory (L02)

Welcome to the official site of NOAK Observatory which is located at Ioannina, Greece

The NOAK Observatory was founded in 2013 and is based in Stavraki, Ioannina (Greece). Initially its equipment was for observational purposes, but over time and with the acquisition of experience, it was directed to astrophotography and eventually to scientific research.
In 2017, after an evaluation, it obtained the Observatory Code L02 from the Minor Planet Center (a NASA-funded service) and since then it has been carrying out astrometric measurements of asteroids and comets with the main objective of determining the orbit of these objects, which are newly discovered by NASA telescopes or other research centres. In March 2019, it became the first observatory in Greece, both amateur and professional, to record a NEOCP (Near Earth Object) object and submit its measurements to the MPC.

Since 2022 ΝΟΑΚ Observatory has been a member of IAWN (International Asteroid Warning Network), an organisation established following recommendations from the United Nations and in particular the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), for an internationally-coordinated response to a potential Near Earth Object (NEO) threat. It is responsible for the detection, monitoring and characterisation of NEOs and has been tasked with developing a strategy to assist governments in analysing the consequences of asteroid impacts and planning actions to avoid them United Nations- Office for Outer Space Affairs- IAWN. In February 2024, he also joined the Meerkat Asteroid Guard imminent impactor warning service of the European Space Agency (ESA) ΜEERKAT ASTEROID GUARD.

Finally, the observatory deals with photometric measurements of the above objects as well as star occultations by asteroids.In fact, from the beginning of 2024 he is a reviewer of these observations that are deposited in the SODIS system of the International Occultation Timing Association / European Section (IOTA/ES) for Greece and Cyprus sodis.iota-es.de/.
It is also a member of the Exoclock group, participating in the more accurate recording and analysis of exoplanet passages in front of their parent star. These measurements will be used to more accurately determine the transit times of 1000 exoplanets in the European Space Agency's 2029 ESA ARIEL mission. It is also a member of AAVSO.

This website was created after personal work, not using ready-made solutions, with the aim to collect and present the work of the observatory, as well as to help, if possible, anyone interested in related issues.
The site will be constantly updated and will inform about events-developments that are worthy of attention. Finally, using the contact form, comments, remarks and suggestions for cooperation for the development of the science of Astronomy can be made.
(In case the website is not working properly, you can also find it here: http://noak.dyndns.org/ )

The Observatory's publications, research and presentations

The Fragmentation of Comet C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS)

C/2019 Y4 (ZTF)

The sky right now.