Kitt Peak National Observatory – A Hidden Wonder

Often times, we live in an area for years or spend a lot of time there and don’t even realize some of the amazing places close by. Pima County is home to many beautiful and amazing places that often fly under the radar. Kitt Peak National Observatory is one of those places. Set atop the beautiful Quinlan Mountains in the Sonoran Desert, the Kitt Peak National Observatory provides an experience that is truly out of this world.

The observatory houses an extensive collection of telescopes including 24 optical telescopes and two radio telescopes. It sits at just over 6,800 feet in elevation so temperatures are usually a bit cooler and wetter than most of the Sonoran desert. And get this, it is famous for having the first telescope used to find near-Earth asteroids, and calculate the likelihood of an impact with our planet. Glad someone is watching.

Kitt Peak hosts a number of opportunities and programs that are open to the public. They offer guided tours daily where you can learn all about the history of the observatory and tour a major research telescope. Each night, the visitor center hosts the Nightly Observing Program where you can show up just before the sun goes down and watch a beautiful sunset and then use some of the telescopes and binoculars to view the stars. Furthermore, the observatory is hoping to add an Advanced Observing Program which allows for a custom experience with a one-on-one guide for a full night tour using any of the telescopes in the visitor’s center.

So if you live in the Tucson area or are just visiting, be sure to check out the observatory and you won’t be disappointed. After all, it has been voted one of the 10 best spots for stargazing in the US.