Southwest of the flyover is Beijing Ancient Observatory. It dates back to the Ming Dynasty. On the high platform are some large bronze astronomical instruments including an armillary sphere and a celestial globe. The site has been renovated and was reopened in April 1983.
It has installed a new reflector, 2.2 metres in diameter, on one of its astronomical telescopes. This new reflector was made of ultra low expansion glass ceramics, a new type of glass developed in the mid-1960s.
