On Monday morning, Papa and I were up early and left home by 9 a.m. to drive to Kitt Peak. We had not been there in 37 years! We enjoyed the 1.5 hour drive, and then up and up to Kitt Peak, at 6875'. We walked all about, seeing the various Observatory buildings housing myriad sizes of telescopes.
We learned that Kitt Peak was chosen in 1957 as the location of the first national astronomical observatory. Today, it is home to the largest collection of astronomical telescopes in the world. Located high above the Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O'odham Nation, Kitt Peak is home to twenty five optical and two radio telescopes. Kitt Peak National Observatory is part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), based in Tucson. NOAO also operates Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in La Serena, Chile, which Papa visited many years ago. NOAO is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), under an agreement with the National Science Foundation. AURA has 39 member institutions in the United States and 7 international affiliate members. Most of those universities have a permanent presence on Kitt Peak, with astronomers working year round.
Our visit to Kitt Peak was quite interesting and really beautiful. The views in every direction were beautiful, including a view of Baboquivari Peak to the south. Lulu enjoyed a conversation with a couple visiting from Nice, France, and exchanged "bonjours" with a couple other visitors. The French love Arizona in winter! Our visit to Kitt Peak was memorable in multiple ways.
We learned that Kitt Peak was chosen in 1957 as the location of the first national astronomical observatory. Today, it is home to the largest collection of astronomical telescopes in the world. Located high above the Sonoran Desert on the Tohono O'odham Nation, Kitt Peak is home to twenty five optical and two radio telescopes. Kitt Peak National Observatory is part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), based in Tucson. NOAO also operates Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in La Serena, Chile, which Papa visited many years ago. NOAO is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), under an agreement with the National Science Foundation. AURA has 39 member institutions in the United States and 7 international affiliate members. Most of those universities have a permanent presence on Kitt Peak, with astronomers working year round.
Our visit to Kitt Peak was quite interesting and really beautiful. The views in every direction were beautiful, including a view of Baboquivari Peak to the south. Lulu enjoyed a conversation with a couple visiting from Nice, France, and exchanged "bonjours" with a couple other visitors. The French love Arizona in winter! Our visit to Kitt Peak was memorable in multiple ways.
