Touring Kitt Peak Observatory in Tucson

 

Getting to Kitt Peak National Observatory is Half the Fun

After cruising down the fairly straight Route 86 for approximately 30 miles, you will turn onto Route 386. Soon, the road starts climbing up the mountain offering stunning views of the surrounding mountains and sprawling desert below, as well as glimpses of the many telescopes.

 

KITT PEAK FUN FACT: Kitt Peak is known to the Tohono O’odham Nation as Iolkam Du’ag. It is the highest point in the Quinlan Mountains, sitting at an altitude of 6877 feet.

 

 

Ascending up the mountain there is evidence of the 2022 Contreras Fire. The fire reached the observatory and a few buildings were lost, but no telescopes were irreversibly damaged.

 

Visitor Center

The visitor center isn’t huge, but has plenty to look at while waiting for your tour to begin.

The gift shop is also located within the visitor center.

 

Concrete Donut

Located near the parking lot is a large, painted concrete donut. These structures are created to test the mounting equipment for large telescope mirrors. This particular concrete donut was not quite the right size and never used for testing, but instead is the canvas for a mural with scenes of the Tohono O’odham Nation painted by Michael Chiago.

 

Solar Telescope

When we visited the small building housing a solar telescope was open. A nice gentleman gave us a quick rundown on what we were going to see, then we all took a turn observing the sun. We not only saw sun spots, but also sun flares – which, for me, was super cool. I witnessed the total solar eclipses in both 2017 and 2024 and one the most fascinating things was seeing the solar prominences. So, I really enjoyed seeing them in this manner, as well.

 

Nicholas U. Mayall 4-meter Telescope Tour

We met our guide inside the visitor center where he started the tour with a presentation. Then, he led us outside on our trek to the Nicholas U. Mayall telescope, stopping along the way and providing various information. I can’t pretend to remember what all he said. I just remember thinking this is the place where so much scientific information that I don’t full understand comes from.

 

The Mayall telescope is 187 feet tall and weighs 30,000 pounds. At the time of its first light, in 1973, this 4 meter telescope was the second-largest telescope in the world. It continues to be the largest telescope at Kitt Peak.

 

Before seeing the telescope room, we took an elevator up to a viewing platform. From here, we could see the official summit of Kitt Peak (left), and Coyote Mountains (right), with Mt. Lemmon in the distance.

 

Currently, the Mayall telescope houses a project of the US Department of Energy Office of Science, known as DESI. DESI (Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument) is the most powerful multi-object survey spectrograph in the world. It takes 5000 images of stars, galaxies, and other space objects every 20 minutes. These images are being used to study dark matter and aid in creating the largest 3d map of the universe.

 

 

As we made our way back to the visitor center, our guide shared more observatory information. We also spotted the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) dish moving, so we chatted about that. The National Radio Astronomy Observatory dish is one of 10 identical antennas spread from Mauna Kea in Hawaii to St. Croix in the Virgin Islands.

 

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed the tour and would absolutely tour again.

If a science themed tour doesn’t intrigue you, the drive up the mountain, taking in the amazing views, and perusing the visitor center alone are worth the trip. However, come prepared for a 15-20 degree drop in temperature compared to Tucson, and the possibility of strong winds.

 

  Optional Items to Bring

• Sunscreen
• Car Roadside Emergency Kit