At the dawn of the new millenium, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens got its own window to the Universe; a small observatory, built at the University Campus, at Zografos, Athens. A 5-m dome rests on the roof of the Physics Department since 1994, housing the 0.4 m f/8 telescope. The observatory, apart from the dome, includes a large control room and a small apartment, used for overnight accommodation for the observer and for the occasional foreign visitors.

The telescope at the University of Athens Observatory (UOAO) was installed in March 1999 and was a donation by the chairman of the construction company DYNAMIKI S.A., the late L. Gerostathopoulos, in memory of his mother. The total cost of the telescope and its scientific accessories was estimated at that time to be about $140.000.