Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory

Over a long holiday weekend, I decided to go do something a little different.  I hadn’t been out of the country yet this year so I decided to take my Honda Pacific Coast motorcycle to British Columbia for the weekend.  Canada is just a few hours away from Oregon yet this is the first time I’ve ever taken a vehicle to the Great White North.  Why did I never do this before?!

The first stop after I went over the border was at the National Research Council Canada’s Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory.  I really like checking out different interesting sites used for astronomy and other space-related things.

This is a really interesting little facility.  It is much smaller than the Goldstone Deep Space Network facilities but no less impressive.  Rather than only talking to spacecraft, this facility does many different types of research.

This big thing is the CHIME telescope.  It is mapping hydrogen in the universe.

This is part of a tunable long baseline antenna setup.

All of these poles are from a 22 MHz telescope that has been offline for many years.  It helped map the universe at one point in the past.

The main operations building and the big dish.

Looking down at another telescope array.

One of the two solar trackers at the facility.

Back out with my motorcycle getting ready to go.

This is a really cool facility and well worth the visit.

Kitt Peak National Observatory

20160127_083148During the RAMS 2016 conference, I had a few free moments to run out west of Tucson and check out the Kitt Peak National Observatory.  The drive out through the desert is gorgeous before this magnificent view comes into focus.  Those little white dots on top of that mountain are telescopes.

20160127_084500Heading up the road, one of the massive telescopes comes into view.

20160127_085406Looking north and a little west on the way to the summit.



20160127_085944_Richtone(HDR)Little round domes full of science!



20160127_090852_Richtone(HDR)

20160127_093102_Richtone(HDR)Some local petroglyphs hauled to the summit from a nearby farm.

20160127_102307The big solar telescope.



20160127_103115Caution: snakes.

20160127_103148A no longer used telescope next to the solar telescope.


20160127_103826_Richtone(HDR)

Inside the solar telescope looking up toward the outer mirror.



20160127_103627The mirror assemblies that route and focus the sunlight into the observation room.



20160127_110220_Richtone(HDR)Looking more or less south toward more of the mountain range.


20160127_111103_Richtone(HDR)Inside the observation room at the solar telescope.

20160127_111723_Richtone(HDR)Big telescopes on the mountaintop.

20160127_112029_Richtone(HDR)
The telescope inside one of the big domes.



20160127_112345
Beautiful view along the ridgeline.  Telescopes fading into desert.



20160127_113607_Richtone(HDR)Looking from the north part of the side toward the main complex of telescopes.

20160127_113631

Looking more or less east.



20160127_114016Inside the behemoth telescope, the 4M Mayall Telescope.

20160127_115002_Richtone(HDR)
What a gorgeous site to look at the stars!