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Top 10 Observatories & Planetariums in Arizona, United States
The state of Arizona is one that features a fantastic diversity of landscapes and areas of geological interest. North Arizona is famous for the Grand Canyon, a colorful chasm with steep rocky walls more than a mile deep and stretching some 277 miles alongside the Colorado River. Other notable destinations in North Arizona include Flagstaff set alongside the San Francisco Peaks which has the largest ponderosa pine forest, Museum of Northern Arizona, and is close to a number of national parks and monuments. On the south side of Arizona lies the city of Phoenix, the largest in Arizona. Notable day trips in Phoenix include the Heard Museum which is one of America's largest collections of Native American art, Phoenix Museum of History, as well as the Desert Botanical garden which has a great collection of desert plants.
Restaurants in Arizona
1. Mt. Lemmon SkyCenter Observatory
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 269 reviews
Reviewed By mindycwhittle - Saint Louis, United States
Wonderful evening spent with knowledgeable hosts, stargazing and learning about the universe. Anna and Tracy were both perfect guides through the evening; we saw several different amazing celestial bodies through the 32 inch telescope and learned more than we thought possible. The dinner was very good (sandwiches, salad and extras). A perfect way to spend an evening in Tucson and see the sky as never before.
2. Apache-Sitgreaves Observatory
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 2 reviews
The Apache-Sitgreaves Observatory in Overgaard, AZ borders the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest and offers World-Class dark skies for night sky viewing using the largest public observing telescope in Arizona - a 36-inch telescope. On select Friday nights there are Couples Night Sky Photography Workshops for a romantic night under the stars learning about DSLR cameras, astronomy, and each other. Select Saturday nights, viewing using the 36-inch telescope (groups by reservation, too). Saturday late morning and afternoons see the Sun safely and hear it too on the radio telescope. An exceptional monster of a telescope, the 36-inch computerized telescope will show you unbelievable views. Visit the website for online reservation information for your family and friends observing experience using the largest public observing telescope in Arizona.
3. Lowell Observatory
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,931 reviews
We are now in our first phase of reopening! This means you can get limited time, premium access to the Giovale Open Deck Observatory (GODO) These will be private experiences with one group of up to ten cohabitating or co-traveling people. Not only is GODO Premium Access extremely low-risk, it also allows you to experience all the GODO has to offer with virtually no wait times. Stay tuned for more telescopes, in our next phase we will be adding the Clark and Dyer telescopes to the Premium Access experience! Click the link below to learn more about this unique opportunity. We can't wait to see you—welcome back to the home of Pluto! https://lowell.edu/welcomeback
Reviewed By 634lisas - Surprise, United States
We got tickets for $11 on Groupon and it was well worth it even though we were only there in the evening. We arrived just before 8 and saw a presentation on Saturn on the omniglobe. They had 3 telescopes set up for night viewing and we could see Jupiter and all its stripes, Saturn and it's rings and moons and a star cluster that was 222,000 light years away!! We stayed for a constellation tour at 9 which was great - full of interesting info and myths about some of the visible constellations. Next time we will plan to spend the day there as there are talks and presentations running all day long. Perfect for anyone interested in the stars, space or mythology. Highly recommend, even for teens (my daughter is 13) :)
4. Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 29 reviews
This is a popular spot for viewing far-off areas and also serves as a working research center.
Reviewed By 315AndreaF - Green Valley, United States
So far I have only been to the Visitor's Center and done some short hikes around that area. The center is wonderful and there are two large telescopes that allow you to see all around the area. There is a nice picnic area as well and clean restrooms. I love hiking up there as well.
5. Kitt Peak National Observatory
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 416 reviews
Located 56 miles southwest of Tucson on the Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation, the observatory is a working research station situated high above on Kitt Peak.
Reviewed By MerelyATourist
My wife and I visited here in early November last year during a two-night stay in Tucson. Visiting this observatory was an essential activity in our Arizona vacation, which was astronomy-themed as much as possible. Although there are a large number of telescopes on the summit of Kitt Peak - 22 optical telescopes and two radio telescopes - only a few of them are accessible to the public (or would be if not for the current pandemic). The best way to see them is to take the guided tours, of which there are three: one for the McMath-Pierce Solar Telescope, one for the 2.1-meter telescope and one for the Mayall 4-meter telescope, the latter being the largest telescope on the peak. You can choose individual tours but you get a discounted rate for all three, which is what we did. Each of the tours normally runs only once per day. There are also daytime VIP tours that happen one day each month, and the Nightly Observing Program. We attended only the regular daytime tours. Going on a guided tour provides access to the inside of the telescope buildings that presumably would not otherwise happen, at least for some of them. For instance, in the case of the solar telescope, we were shown a view down the main shaft as well as a view back up the shaft from the control room at the bottom. In the case of the Mayall telescope, we would have seen the telescope from a visitor's viewing room through windows. "Would have" because during our time there the interior of the dome beyond the windows was pitch black. Apparently, observatory staff were testing out a new scientific instrument for the telescope and needed complete darkness. It is unfortunate that the staff chose the time of a public tour for that activity, given the importance of public outreach to the observatory (it is funded largely by taxpayers). However, that was the only disappointment during our time on the summit.
6. Mount Graham International Observatory
7. Discovery Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 23 reviews
Contains 2 of the country's leading sky-watching sites (Aker and Mount Graham International observatories, the world's largest pin-hole camera and more.
8. Spencer's Observatory
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 24 reviews
Spencer's Observatory is Tucson's new, privately-owned observatory offering personalized Star Tours of the Tucson sky under a custom-built retractable roof with patio. Situated near the southwestern entrance to the Tucson Mountain Park-West at Cat Mountain Lodge, a bed & breakfast in the desert with eco-friendly accommodations in a vintage ranch setting. The observatory is home to a Celestron 14" SCT telescope on a GoTo Mount, a 10" Meade LX200 SCG telescope, as well as a Piggy Back 4" Stellar View Refractor. Astrophotography and small Star Parties also available with nearby Coyote Pause Cafe and Cat Mountain Station artisan shopping center.
Reviewed By keithmX6560QD - Alexandria, United States
This was a GREAT experience and a great value. We did the AstroPhotography session Robby. Robby was very knowledgeable and personable. He coached us through a combination of camera ISO and shutter to take pictures of stars, constellations, and nebula. Book it, you won’t be disappointed!
9. Flandrau Science Center & Planetarium
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 86 reviews
Located on the University of Arizona campus, Flandrau Science Center & Planetarium inspires visitors of all ages with the wonders of science. Explore the solar system and beyond in Flandrau’s state-of-the-art planetarium theater, featuring a fulldome digital projection system that can launch from the Earth and fly to planets, moons, and asteroids. Flandrau also offers fun interactive science exhibits that will engage the whole family, and the dazzling specimens of the UA Mineral Museum. Current exhibits topics include earth science, astronomy, math puzzles, and gemstones. Open Daily, see website for hours, showtimes, and admission prices.
Reviewed By Pukster27 - Tucson, United States
Easy to spend couple of hours here, longer if seeing a planetarium show. There is a great mineral display in the basement too. For special events, the show pricing is sometimes reduced.
10. Richard F Caris Mirror Lab
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 57 reviews
At the University of Arizona's Richard F. Caris Mirror Laboratory, a team of scientists and engineers are making giant, lightweight mirrors of unprecedented power for a new generation of optical telescopes. These mirrors represent a radical departure from the conventional solid-glass mirrors used in the past. They have a honeycomb structure on the inside; made out of Ohara E6-type borosilicate glass that is melted, molded and spun cast into the shape of a paraboloid in a custom-designed rotating oven. Honeycomb mirrors offer the advantages of their solid counterparts - rigidity and stability - but they can be significantly larger, and dramatically lighter. The Richard F Caris Mirror Lab team has developed a revolutionary new method to polish the honeycomb mirrors with a deeply curved, parabolic surface that results in much shorter focal lengths than conventional mirrors.
Reviewed By MerelyATourist
My wife and I visited this one-of-a-kind facility one afternoon in early November last year during a two-night, two-day stay in Tucson. We had, of course, purchased tickets several weeks prior. The necessity of that was driven home when we saw a number of people being denied entry to our tour because they didn't already have valid tickets (they actually had tickets for the same time slot on a different day). If they had been allowed to join, the tour group would have almost doubled in size. This tour should be fascinating for anyone even remotely interested in how the largest mirrors in the world for some of the largest telescopes in the world are made. The tour starts out in a lecture room where you get a slide presentation. Then it moves to the telescope-making facility proper, where you can, if you are lucky, view mirrors in a number of different stages of completion. We lucked out and they were working at the time on mirrors for the Giant Magellan Telescope. That telescope will use a total of seven 8.4-meter mirrors, which is the largest that the mirror lab can make. One mirror was "baking" in a huge rotating oven, which is spun in order for the glass to reach the appropriate parabolic shape as the once-molten glass slowly cools. The other mirror we saw was being polished on a huge rotating platform. Our tour guide also showed us the equipment the lab uses to optically test the mirrors and the equipment and area they use to pack each mirror up for shipment. Apparently, the 8.4-meter maximum size is dictated by the width of US highway underpasses. If you have any interest in astronomy, this tour is not to be missed. Even if you don't have such an interest, the sheer scale of the mirrors being made and the length of time each takes to make should impress you.
