The purposes for the newfound association were, and still are, to spread and explain astronomical knowledge to a broad public and to provide support for the Planetarium Stuttgart.

To gather enough monetary funds for the construction of the Observatory at the site it still is today, even such famous guest speakers as Albert Einstein followed the invitation to give a speech about astronomy and donate the revenue to the Schwäbische Sternwarte e.V..

During World War II, all activities at the observatory were suspended, only to be resumed in September 1947.

Inside the bigger of the observatory's two astrodomes, the oldest of the six telescopes is attached to a mount reaching down to the bottom of the tower.

The latter telescope is frequently used by the members of the association for their scientific research – predominantly the observation of star occultations by minor planets.