On Wednesday 6 November, the World Architecture Festival 2024 kicked off in Singapore.
On the first day, dozens of architects presented their work on the stage of the prestigious competition, including Elena Tsolakis, a representative of Kyriakos Tsolakis Architects from Cyprus. The firm's chief architect presented the project for the new observatory at Troodos.
She managed to impress the expert jury. As a result, the Cypriot observatory outperformed the best constructions from all over the world and took first place in the category 'Completed Civil Projects'. Kyriakos Tsolakis Architects managed to beat such architectural giants as Zaha Hadid Architects, BIG, Renzo Piano and Foster + Partners.
As a reminder, the construction of the Troodos Observatory will take place from April 2021 to May 2024.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by the President of Cyprus, Nicos Christodoulides. From the outside, the building, with its 5.6 metre mirrored dome, looks like a spaceship. Its design was inspired by the iconic Star Wars franchise.
The observatory is located at an altitude of 1.2 thousand metres, near the villages of Agridia and Khandria (near Agros). The site was chosen because of the low level of light pollution that affects stargazing, as well as the low humidity. More than 200 cloudless Cypriot nights a year will allow astronomers to observe the stars without interference. The architectural design of the project was developed by Helena Tsolakis in collaboration with her brother Nicodemus.
Their idea is for the observatory to look like a spaceship that has just landed and is ready to take off. The building houses two main telescopes: a 20-inch astronomical telescope and a telescope for observing the sun. The new observatory is expected to attract scientists, researchers and astronomy enthusiasts from all over the world, as well as becoming a centre of attraction for all schools in Cyprus.
