Kjell Henriksen Observatory in Svalbard, Norway

© Vincent Fournier/Gallery Stoc

Studying the skies in Svalbard. Kjell Henriksen Observatory

While these domes look like they should be in a movie set depicting a galaxy far, far away, they're actually part of a scientific research station here on planet Earth. Kjell Henriksen Observatory is named for a Norwegian scientist whose research focused on polar lights. The aurora borealis is frequently seen here, deep within the Arctic Circle on Norway's remote Svalbard territory. And the observatory is specially designed to observe the aurora. Since it opened in 2008, the observatory has become a destination for atmospheric scientists, who can rent one of these thirty glass-topped rooms built to house high-end optical instruments.