Hubert Zitt, a professor of electrotechnology at the Zweibrücken University of Applied Science in Rhineland-Palatinate, has broken the internet by restyling an observatory to look like the R2D2 robot from Star Wars.

R2D2 observatory in Germany

Deciding that the university’s observatory needed a fresh look, Professor Zitt got together a team of decorators to give it the ultimate intergalactic makeover. The whole structure was sprayed a brighter shade of white and details such as R2D2’s eye and buttons were added to complete the look. It turns out the observatory’s domed shape makes it the perfect doppelgänger!  

The project was completed in late 2018, but has only recently gone viral. The observatory even caught the attention of Luke Skywalker himself (A.K.A actor Mark Hamill), who retweeted a picture of it, thanking Professor Zitt for transforming the Germans “into giant nerds”. If pictures on Twitter are to be believed, Star Wars fans from all over the world are now descending on the largely unknown German city, to have their picture taken with the bot.

R2-D2 Observatory Transformed Germans Into Giant Nerds https://t.co/s4vUwKGxEP via @LaughingSquid

— Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) March 22, 2019

Real-life science fiction

Professor Zitt is no stranger to fame, having previously attracted international attention with his lecture series on “The Physics of Star Trek”. The class, which he delivered at universities and science fiction conventions around the world, discussed the real-life potential of technologies shown in the TV series, such as beaming, holographic communication and warp drive technology.