Observatório Nacional

Name

Observatório Nacional

Legal name

Observatório Nacional

Website

https://on.br

Company type

Public

Founded year

1827

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Scientific Research Services

NAICS

Public Administration (92), Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (54136), Space Research and Technology (92711), Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (541360)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Instruments For Meas & Testing Of Electricity & Elec Signals (3825)

akta.pro primary industry

Standards, Metrology & Accreditation Bodies (BPAIAOAC)

Keywords

• Time and frequency metrology
• Seismic monitoring services
• Astronomy research
• Geophysical monitoring
• Calibration services

Headquarters

HQ city

Rio de Janeiro

HQ country

Brazil

HQ region

Latin America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Observatório Nacional is a Brazilian federal government research institution under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI) that provides scientific services in time and frequency metrology (Hora Legal Brasileira), astronomy and astrophysics, and geophysics (seismic, gravimetric, and geophysical monitoring). It also operates high-performance computing services (CPDON), atomic clock calibration, certified timestamping, and graduate academic programs in astronomy and geophysics.

Product overview

Observatório Nacional is a Brazilian federal research institution (created 1827) offering scientific services primarily in three domains: Astronomy/Astrophysics, Geophysics, and Time/Frequency Metrology. The institution provides both operational services and academic programs. Core scientific services include the Rede Sismográfica Brasileira for seismic monitoring, the Hora Legal Brasileira official time service with certified time stamping and synchronization, astronomical software tools (ASTRO), and high-performance computing through CPDON. Academic offerings include graduate programs in Astronomy and Geophysics plus scientific initiation training. The institution also maintains digital archives of 948 historical photographic glass plates and operates specialized equipment pools. The portfolio is organized as independent scientific services rather than a unified software platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• DISHO - Divisão de Serviços da Hora Legal Brasileira: Division responsible for generating, maintaining and disseminating the Brazilian Legal Time through atomic cesium clocks.
• CPDON - Centro de Processamento de Dados do Observatório Nacional
• RSIS - Rede Sismográfica do Sul e Sudeste do Brasil
• RSBR - Rede Sismográfica Brasileira
• ReTemp/HLB - Rede de Carimbo de Tempo Certificado a Hora Legal Brasileira
• ASTRO

Products and services

• Hora Legal Brasileira (HLB)
• Carimbo de Tempo (ReTemp/HLB)
• Sincronismo Certificado (ReSinc/HLB)
• Calibração de Relógios Atômicos
• Rede Sismográfica Brasileira (RSBR)
• Rede Gravimétrica Fundamental
• Pool de Equipamentos Geofísicos
• Análise Petrofísica de Rochas Reservatório
• ASTRO (Software Astronômico)
• CPDON (Centro de Processamento de Dados do Observatório Nacional)
• Pós-Graduação em Astronomia
• Pós-Graduação em Geofísica
• Anuários do Observatório Nacional

Quantifiable outcome

• Brazilian Legal Time is traceable to UTC with daily GPS intercomparisons and monthly BIPM Circular T reporting
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Universidade de São Paulo (USP) - BRASIScoreTechnology or IntegrationUSP's Instituto de Astronomia, Geofísica e Ciências Atmosféricas (IAG) operates the BRASIS sub-network within the Rede Sismográfica Brasileira (RSBR). ON coordinates the national seismic network in partnership with USP, contributing to real-time earthquake monitoring and data sharing across Brazil's seismic infrastructure.
• Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) - RSISNEcoreTechnology or IntegrationUFRN coordinates the Rede Sismográfica do Nordeste do Brasil (RSISNE), one of four sub-networks within the RSBR coordinated by ON. UFRN contributes seismic monitoring of northeastern Brazil.
• Universidade de Brasília (UNB) - RSCNcoreTechnology or IntegrationUNB coordinates the Rede Sismográfica do Centro e Norte do Brasil (RSCN), contributing seismic monitoring for central and northern regions of Brazil as part of the RSBR framework under ON's coordination.
• Serviço Geológico do Brasil (SGB/CPRM)coreTechnology or IntegrationSGB operates a Seismology Laboratory as part of the RSBR, and holds a formal cooperation agreement with ON for maintenance support and seismology research. SGB receives RSBR seismic data and helps disseminate it through its own platforms.
• PetrobrasminorOthersPetrobras, through its P&D (Research & Development) clause investments per ANP Regulamento Técnico 05/2005, provided funding for the initial deployment of the RSBR seismic network infrastructure as part of the Rede de Estudos Geotectônicos Petrobras-Universidades (RGEOTEC).
• ANP (Agência Nacional do Petróleo, Gás Natural e Biocombustíveis)minorOthersANP regulates the oil and gas sector and provides regulatory framework for the P&D clause investments that funded RSBR's seismic monitoring infrastructure through concession contracts.
• MCTI (Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação)coreOthersON is a federal research institute under the MCTI, which provides institutional funding, governance oversight, and strategic direction for all ON activities including time services, seismic networks, and astronomical research.
• BIPM (Bureau International des Poids et Mesures)coreOthersBIPM coordinates international time comparisons for UTC calculation. ON submits monthly measurement data to BIPM, which publishes results in Circular T, establishing ON's time traceability to UTC.
• ICP-Brasil (Infraestrutura de Chaves Públicas Brasileira)coreOthersICP-Brasil is Brazil's Public Key Infrastructure authority. ON is the designated ACT (Autoridade de Carimbo de Tempo) within ICP-Brasil for producing legally certified timestamps, and Portaria MCT 293/2007 formalizes ON's role in this national digital trust framework.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• BIPM (Bureau International des Poids et Mesures): International intergovernmental organization that coordinates UTC and Circular T. ON is a contributing national laboratory to BIPM comparisons — a counterpart/standards body rather than competitor.

Direct peers

• INMETRO (Instituto Nacional de Metrologia, Qualidade e Tecnologia): Brazil's national metrology and quality institute. Most directly comparable Brazilian peer: shares legal time/calibration CMCs, BIPM/SIM participation, and operates alongside ON within the federal science structure.
• SGB / CPRM (Serviço Geológico do Brasil): Brazilian Geological Survey with formal cooperation agreement with ON for RSBR maintenance and seismology research. Operates the SGB Seismology Laboratory as a node of the network ON coordinates.

Broad incumbents

• NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology): U.S. national metrology institute operating atomic clock standards traceable to UTC and conducting scientific research. Directly comparable to ON's time/frequency, calibration, and standards roles, and an explicit GPS intercomparison partner of ON.
• NPL (National Physical Laboratory, UK): UK's national metrology laboratory with comparable time/frequency, calibration, and physical-science research mandates. Operates NPLTime® certified timestamping analogous to ON's ReTemp/HLB.
• PTB (Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt): Germany's national metrology institute and BIPM participant. Comparable to ON in operating cesium/optical clock standards, calibration services, and participating in international UTC traceability exercises.
• IRIS Consortium / USGS Earthquake Hazards Program: U.S. seismological research infrastructure and seismic data dissemination. Comparable to ON/RSBR in operating networked broadband seismometers and providing open seismic data services to the research community.

Regional players

• Casa da Ciência da UFRJ / Museu de Astronomia e Ciências Afins (MAST): Brazilian scientific heritage institution under MCTI. Comparable as a peer federal science-communication and historical-archive operator, and an adjacent Brazilian counterpart in astronomy heritage preservation.
• CONICET (Argentina) - Observatorio Astronómico de Córdoba: Argentine national scientific research council with astronomical observatory and geophysical capabilities. Comparable as a regional South American state research institute with overlapping astronomy and geophysics mandates.

Emerging players

• USP - Instituto de Astronomia, Geofísica e Ciências Atmosféricas (IAG/USP): University partner that operates the BRASIS seismic sub-network within RSBR. Comparable as a Brazilian geophysics/Astronomy research operator and ON's RSBR sub-network coordinator.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ON_MCTIC
• YouTubeyoutube.com/observatorionacional
• Facebookfacebook.com/observatorionacional
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/observat-rio-nacional
• Instagraminstagram.com/observatorionacional

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Observatório Nacional