According to the Decree n°88-384 of 19 April 1988 on the organisation of the Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, modified by the Decree n°2010-27 of 7 January 2010 - art. 2, the mission of the Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur is "to contribute to the progress of knowledge of the universe through the systematic acquisition of observational data, the development and exploitation of theoretical resources, experimental and suitable techniques in the fields of astronomy, geosciences, related sciences and their applications".

The mission of the Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur is to contribute to the monitoring and forecasting of natural phenomena related to the fields of astronomy, astrophysics and geophysics.

The Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur accomplishes this mission through three joint research units: Artémis - Géoazur - Lagrange.

The OCA provides these laboratories with platforms, the Calern observation site, and more broadly, a joint service unit for support functions, the UMS Galilée.

The Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur is an Observatory of the Sciences of the Universe accredited by the National Institute of the Sciences of the Universe of the CNRS.