The Astronomical Observatory of the Autonomous Region of Valle d’Aosta (also indicated by the acronym OAVdA) and the Planetarium of Lignan are located in an area of small town called Saint-Barthélemy, in the municipality of Nus, at an altitude of more than 1,600 metres and about 16 km north of the village of Nus.
Both are managed by the Clément Fillietroz-ONLUS Foundation, financed by contributions from the Autonomous Region of Valle d’Aosta, the Municipality of Nus and the Unité des Communes Valdôtaines Mont Émilius, founding members of the Foundation, as well as by income from its own activities.
These are mainly four: scientific research, including support for degree theses, PhDs and post-docs, closely linked to technology transfer, which applies the new knowledge produced by basic research in fields other than the one for which it was conceived; education, i.e. support for the teaching of astronomical sciences for schools; and outreach of astronomy and astrophysics for the general public. In these areas, our Foundation has benefited, for specific initiatives or for supporting activities, from funding from national and European calls for proposals, from banking foundations, such as the Fondazione CRT-Cassa di Risparmio di Torino, which has supported us since 2008, from regional bodies such as the B.I.M. consortium, and others.
