The Observatory of Skinakas is located at Idi mountain at 1750 m height, and 50 km away from Heraklio.

The Observatory, which started operating in 1987, is founded and operating because of the collaboration of the University of Crete, the Foundation for Research and Technology and the German Max Planck Institut for Extraterrestrial Physics.

The main building is housing the Observatory’s telescope, also there is a building for the guests and one smaller one for the power generators.

The Observatory of Skinakas is probably the most productive in Greece, concerning the research results, due to the many observational programs that run, while also many university students use it for their graduate and postgraduate training.