Mount Lemmon and Observatory
4 / 6
Mount Lemmon towers over Tucson and offers a total change of scenery, and perhaps just as important, a change of temperature too. We drove the Catalina Highway toward the summit for the SkyCenter Observatory program, and the drive itself was part of the adventure. The road climbs over 6,000 feet from the desert floor to the summit at 9,159 feet, with a series of scenic pullouts along the way. We stopped at the first one, Babad Do’ag Scenic Overlook, which offered a sweeping view back across Tucson and the surrounding desert. From there, each stop higher up revealed a slightly different perspective, as the landscape slowly shifted from saguaro-studded desert to pine forest.
We passed several cyclists grinding their way toward the summit. One rider ahead of us steered one-handed, turned around, and snapped a picture of us. From his perspective, we looked like a couple of tourists working with some misinformation, hauling kayaks up a mountain in the middle of the desert.
We stopped at Windy Point Vista for lunch, and the views there were phenomenal. You can see clear across the desert floor, with sheer cliffs and rock formations all around. It’s a perfect place to pause and take it all in. While we were there, we chatted with a cyclist who had pedaled all the way up the mountain. No small feat, considering Windy Point sits at about 6,600 feet in elevation. She mentioned she’d forgotten her protein bars, so we gladly shared a few of ours. She was incredibly grateful. And get this, she was 76 years old and currently lives in South Carolina, where I grew up. Talk about inspiring.
By the time we reached the top, we’d left the 100+ degree heat of Tucson far behind. The summit was about 30 degrees cooler, with crisp mountain air. We spotted a short-horned lizard at the higher elevation, camouflaged perfectly against the rocks. If threatened, they can actually squirt blood from their eyes. I did do a little stalking trying to get a good pic, so thankfully I didn’t upset him.
We spent the evening at the Mount Lemmon SkyCenter Observatory, home to the largest telescope available for public use in the U.S., the 32-inch Schulman Telescope. We had booked tickets for the event two months prior, and it was something Danny had been looking forward to. At nearly 9,157 feet, with Tucson’s strict dark-sky ordinances minimizing light pollution, it’s one of the best vantage points for stargazing. Even with a full moon, the views were incredible.
Before sunset, we safely viewed the sun through specialized solar telescopes. One showed coronal mass ejections, small red flares along the edge, while the other revealed sunspots. Pro tip, never try this at home. One peek through a regular telescope at the sun and that eye’s done for good.
As night fell, the temperature dropped into the 40s. The observatory is not heated, though they do have a small warming room with heaters you can step into. We observed Jupiter with its moons and glowing bands, the Orion Nebula with its soft blue cloud, and even Sirius during daylight, shining faintly in the blue sky. We also viewed the remnants of a supernova, glowing with bands of hydrogen, and finished with a close-up of the blindingly bright moon. One eye was toast for several minutes afterward as it adjusted back to night vision.
The observatory is managed by the University of Arizona and shared with other institutions. The site was once a Cold War radar installation, but now it’s used for astrophysics research, light pollution studies, and tracking near-Earth objects.
After the telescope viewing, they served a simple sandwich dinner, which was a welcome break in the cold. While we ate, one of the guides gave the group a choice to hear more about astronomy or about his day job as a commercial electrician. The crowd chose the electrician talk. Danny, who did electrical work in his younger years, ended up chatting with him and complimenting his panels. Turns out astronomy was just a hobby for him.
After that, the other guide, an astrophotographer, gave a presentation and showed some of his work, which was incredible. Seeing those images added another layer to what we had just observed through the telescopes.
This was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity with access to a million dollar telescope.
We stopped at Windy Point Vista for lunch, and the views there were phenomenal. You can see clear across the desert floor, with sheer cliffs and rock formations all around. It’s a perfect place to pause and take it all in. While we were there, we chatted with a cyclist who had pedaled all the way up the mountain. No small feat, considering Windy Point sits at about 6,600 feet in elevation. She mentioned she’d forgotten her protein bars, so we gladly shared a few of ours. She was incredibly grateful. And get this, she was 76 years old and currently lives in South Carolina, where I grew up. Talk about inspiring.
By the time we reached the top, we’d left the 100+ degree heat of Tucson far behind. The summit was about 30 degrees cooler, with crisp mountain air. We spotted a short-horned lizard at the higher elevation, camouflaged perfectly against the rocks. If threatened, they can actually squirt blood from their eyes. I did do a little stalking trying to get a good pic, so thankfully I didn’t upset him.
We spent the evening at the Mount Lemmon SkyCenter Observatory, home to the largest telescope available for public use in the U.S., the 32-inch Schulman Telescope. We had booked tickets for the event two months prior, and it was something Danny had been looking forward to. At nearly 9,157 feet, with Tucson’s strict dark-sky ordinances minimizing light pollution, it’s one of the best vantage points for stargazing. Even with a full moon, the views were incredible.
Before sunset, we safely viewed the sun through specialized solar telescopes. One showed coronal mass ejections, small red flares along the edge, while the other revealed sunspots. Pro tip, never try this at home. One peek through a regular telescope at the sun and that eye’s done for good.
As night fell, the temperature dropped into the 40s. The observatory is not heated, though they do have a small warming room with heaters you can step into. We observed Jupiter with its moons and glowing bands, the Orion Nebula with its soft blue cloud, and even Sirius during daylight, shining faintly in the blue sky. We also viewed the remnants of a supernova, glowing with bands of hydrogen, and finished with a close-up of the blindingly bright moon. One eye was toast for several minutes afterward as it adjusted back to night vision.
The observatory is managed by the University of Arizona and shared with other institutions. The site was once a Cold War radar installation, but now it’s used for astrophysics research, light pollution studies, and tracking near-Earth objects.
After the telescope viewing, they served a simple sandwich dinner, which was a welcome break in the cold. While we ate, one of the guides gave the group a choice to hear more about astronomy or about his day job as a commercial electrician. The crowd chose the electrician talk. Danny, who did electrical work in his younger years, ended up chatting with him and complimenting his panels. Turns out astronomy was just a hobby for him.
After that, the other guide, an astrophotographer, gave a presentation and showed some of his work, which was incredible. Seeing those images added another layer to what we had just observed through the telescopes.
This was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity with access to a million dollar telescope.