Kolonica

Kolonica
Village
Coat of arms
Country Slovakia
Region Prešov
District Snina
Coordinates 48°58′N 22°16′E / 48.967°N 22.267°ECoordinates: 48°58′N 22°16′E / 48.967°N 22.267°E
Population 593 (2004-12-31)
Postal code 067 61
Area code +421-57
Car plate SV
Location of Kolonica in Slovakia
Location of Kolonica in the Prešov Region
Statistics: MOŠ/MIS

Kolonica is a village and municipality in Snina District in the Prešov Region of north-eastern Slovakia.

History

In historical records the village was first mentioned in 1567.

Observatory

Just east of the village of Kolonica is the biggest telescope in Slovakia. Its main purpose is to observe variable stars (those whose brightness varies, for reasons which are still unclear; hence the observatory), which it does using a Soviet-manufactured one-metre telescope. One metre might not sound like much, but a collecting mirror of that diameter puts the observatory among the very largest in central Europe. It can collect about fifty thousand times more light than the human eye. And using the attached photoelectric photometer it can, in theory, count individual photons of light arriving from distant stars.

Geography

The municipality lies at an altitude of 360 metres and covers an area of 27.181 km². It has a population of about 600 people.

External links