Nikolaev Observatory  is one of the oldest observatories in Eastern Europe. It was founded in 1821 as a Naval Observatory. In 1912 it became  Nikolaev department of the Main (Pulkovo) Astronomical Observatory (MAO). In 1935 it was included in the network of scientific institutes of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR as Nikolaev department of GAO. In 1992 it became an independent research institution in Ukraine, and from 2002 it became  Research Institute Nikolaev Astronomical Observatory. At present the Observatory is subordinated to  State Agency for Science, Innovation and Information.
 

 The Observatory is located in the central part of Nikolaev at an altitude of 52m above sea level. The geographic coordinates are longitude 31^o58' E, and latitude 46^o58' N.
Nikolaev observatory was included in the Tentative list of UNESCO of World Heritage Sites from Ukraine (Tentative list № 5116, Tentative list № 5267).

At the present the Nikolaev Observatory is working in such fields as

• dynamics of solar system bodies
• the research of the Near-Earth space
• creation of directories positions of stars
• informational support of astronomical research and astronomical tools
  
• the history of astronomy.