Arcetri Astrophysical Observatory is an observatory in Florence, Italy, founded in 1872 as a memorial to Galileo, who spent his period of house arrest near the site of the observatory. It is now primarily a research institute funded by the Italian government. The instruments at the site are an old 36-centimeter (14-inch) refractor and a solar telescope. A 1.5-meter (60-inch) infrared telescope is located at an altitude of 3,200 meters (10,500 feet) near Zermatt.