The Observatoire de Paris - PSL offers the educational world a wide range of facilities to awaken scientific curiosity, support teaching and encourage vocations. From its educational facilities to teacher training courses, classroom activities, courses for secondary school students and its participation in the Fête de la science, the establishment is actively committed to making astronomy and the sciences of the universe accessible to all levels.
For Students and Teachers
Internships for middle and high school students in 3e and 2nde
The Observatory’s laboratories host a limited number of student interns on a voluntary basis. Spread over a number of weeks, each year around a hundred students from the Observatory’s three sites - Paris, Meudon and Nançay - benefit from this program. As the number of applications far exceeds the capacity of the laboratories, we ask you to scrupulously follow the procedures indicated on the page: https://observatoiredeparis.psl.eu/stages-d-observation-college.html
TIPE, supervised personal initiative work
The “travail d’initiative personnelle encadré”, or TIPE, is a test common to most entrance examinations for the Grandes Ecoles in science. The aim is to carry out multidisciplinary research on a question related to the year’s theme.
contact: tipe chez sympa.obspm.fr
The Paris Observatory library also holds a large number of publications on astronomy. To search the collections, go to the library catalog. You can then consult the books by appointment.
Information: https://observatoiredeparis.psl.eu/-la-bibliotheque-.html
Online courses, BAC level
A course platform managed by the Unité de Formation et d’Enseignement (Training and Teaching Unit) enables you to acquire astronomy knowledge independently. These courses are suitable for students at Bac level.
Find out more:https://media4.obspm.fr/public/ressources_lu/
Teacher training and class sponsorship
Observatoire de Paris - PSL organizes training courses in astronomy and astrophysics for teachers in primary and secondary schools. The establishment also offers teachers a wide range of teaching resources, as well as assistance in setting up educational projects in the classroom, thanks to the sponsorship scheme.
For full details of our activities for teachers, visit the Paris Observatory Teaching Training Unit website.
Activities in the classroom, from kindergarten to science classes
A wide selection of teaching and multimedia resources is available here free of charge, independently of any training course.
Among these resources, you’ll find a list of activities developed over more than fifteen years as part of teacher training courses. These are mainly tutorials and experiments, classified by theme and level, from kindergarten to science classes. Topics covered include:
- Time and celestial mechanics,
- the Sun-Earth-Moon system,
- planets and the solar system,
- the Sun and stars,
- far sky and spectroscopy.
Loan of travelling exhibitions
The Observatory regularly designs light-format travelling exhibitions that can be borrowed free of charge by schools, colleges and universities, non-profit associations and local public bodies such as media libraries and leisure centers.
Exhibitions catalog and reservation details ->https://observatoiredeparis.psl.eu/-prets-d-expositions-.html
Cosmos on Video: A Resource Site Organized by School Level
This portal brings together content presented by professional astronomers on a wide range of themes. For each grade level, the videos - dated and timed - are classified by major theme: Sun, Sun-Earth-Moon Relations, Solar System, Stars, Galaxies, Cosmology, Light, Instruments and Space Exploration, History of Astronomy...
Website Cosmos en Vidéo
Online resources for teachers
This portal brings together online resources produced by the Teaching Training Unit of Paris Observatory, thanks to the Teaching and Information Technologies Unit. Resources are classified according to level, format and volume/duration. Some resources are course materials for the online training course "Lumières sur l’Univers" (7 courses).
Website "Astrophysique sur mesure"
Educational posts for classrooms
Paris Observatory designs educational posters for schools.
Printable files are also available on request.
You can send your request to service.communication chez observatoiredeparis.psl.eu. Subject to availability.
Poster Solar system
Observatoire de Paris-PSL
Educational Installations
On the occasion of the Fête de la Science and as part of sponsored class visits, the Observatoire de Paris – Meudon site opens its doors to schools for an educational immersion at the heart of astrophysics.
Students are invited to discover an exceptional site entirely dedicated to scientific discovery and the exploration of the Universe, with areas specifically designed for learning and scientific awakening. It is also an opportunity to meet scientists, ask questions, and experience science firsthand.
Educational exhibits at Observatoire de Paris
Observatoire de Paris-PSL
The Meudon site features several educational installations:
An outdoor model of the Solar System, stretching nearly 400 meters, scaled to represent both the sizes and distances. A walk through space to better understand our place in the Universe and grasp the vast scales involved.
Interactive and themed exhibits covering the major topics in astrophysics: star formation, galaxies, exoplanets, cosmology, ground-based and space instrumentation…
During the visit, classes can also access two instruments:
The equatorial table dome, which houses a 60 cm telescope, and
The spectroheliograph, a unique instrument that has been capturing daily images of the Sun since 1908, totaling over 100,000 pictures of the Sun’s visible surface.
These educational installations were made possible with the support of the Île-de-France Region as part of the State-Region Planning Contract (CPER).
Fête de la Science
Each year, nearly 600 students are welcomed to our Meudon site for the Fête de la Science. Around sixty volunteers, including our researchers, technicians, and administrative staff, come together to present about fifteen different activities, answer questions, and bring students closer to real scientific research.
The site also offers permanent educational installations such as a model of the Solar System and notable observational instruments like the equatorial table and the spectroheliograph.
Participation is by registration, about one month before the event, announced on the Observatoire’s website.
Fête de la science
Observatoire de Paris-PSL, Nicolas Lesté-Lasserre
Ministry Initiative: Science at School
A national initiative launched by academician Pierre Encrenaz, astrophysicist at the Observatoire de Paris, and Inspector General Jean-Yves Daniel, researcher at the Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris, “Science at School” (Sciences à l’École) has, since its creation in 2004, aimed to support and promote scientific and technical culture projects within secondary education: middle schools, high schools (general, technological, and vocational tracks, as well as post-baccalaureate sections).
Based on interdisciplinarity and partnerships with the research and business sectors, the actions of “Sciences à l’École” prioritize pedagogical innovation, creativity, and teamwork.