 The observatory from the southeast. The Hobby–Eberly Telescope on Mt. Fowlkes (left) and the Harlan J. Smith and Otto Struve Telescopes on Mt. Locke (right). | |
| Alternative names | 711 MC |
|---|---|
| Named after | William Johnson McDonald |
| Organization | |
| Observatory code | 711 |
| Location | Jeff Davis County, Texas |
| Coordinates | 30°40′17″N104°01′19″W / 30.6714°N 104.022°W /30.6714; -104.022 |
| Altitude | 2,077 m (6,814 ft) |
| Established | 1933 |
| Website | mcdonaldobservatory |
| Telescopes |
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  Location of McDonald Observatory | |
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 Related media on Commons | |
McDonald Observatory is anastronomical observatory located near theunincorporated community ofFort Davis inJeff Davis County, Texas, United States. The facility is located on Mount Locke in theDavis Mountains ofWest Texas, with additional facilities on Mount Fowlkes, approximately 1.3 kilometers (0.81 mi) to the northeast.[1] The observatory is part ofThe University of Texas at Austin. It is an organized research unit of theCollege of Natural Sciences.
The observatory producesStarDate, a dailysyndicated radio program consisting of short segments related to astronomy that airs on bothNational Public Radio and commercial radio stations — about 400 affiliates in all.
McDonald Observatory was originally endowed by the Texas bankerWilliam Johnson McDonald (1844–1926), who left about $1 million — the bulk of his fortune — to The University of Texas at Austin to endow an astronomical observatory. Edwin Hockaday Fowlkes, step-son of the land's original owner John Chandler Prude, donated the land to the University of Texas to build the observatory. The provision of the will was challenged by McDonald's relatives, but after a long legal fight, the university received about $800,000 from the estate and construction began at Mt. Locke. The then-unnamed Otto Struve Telescope was dedicated on May 5, 1939,[2] and at that time was the second largest telescope in the world. McDonald Observatory was operated under contract byThe University of Chicago until the 1960s, when control was transferred to The University of Texas at Austin under the direction ofHarlan J. Smith.[3]
Research today at the McDonald Observatory encompasses a wide variety of topics and projects, including the search for and understanding ofplanetary systems, stars and stellarspectroscopy, theinterstellar medium,extragalactic astronomy, andtheoretical astronomy. The Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment, or HETDEX,[4] is a multi-year undertaking to decode the nature ofdark energy.[5]
Directors[3]
McDonald Observatory is equipped with a wide range of instrumentation forimaging andspectroscopy in theoptical andinfrared spectra, and operates the firstlunar laser ranging station. It works closely with theastronomy department of The University of Texas at Austin while maintaining administrative autonomy.[citation needed] The high and dry peaks of the Davis Mountains make for some of the darkest and clearest night skies in the region and provide excellent conditions for astronomical research.[citation needed]
TheOtto Struve Telescope, dedicated in 1939, was the first large telescope built at the observatory.[9][10] It is located on Mt. Locke at an altitude of 2,070 m (6,790 ft). The summit of Mt. Locke, accessed bySpur 78, is the highest point on Texas highways.[11] TheHarlan J. Smith Telescope, also on Mt. Locke, was completed in 1968.[12][13]
TheHobby-Eberly Telescope (HET), dedicated in late 1997, is located on the summit of Mt. Fowlkes at 2,030 m (6,660 ft) above sea level.[14] It is operated jointly by The University of Texas at Austin,Pennsylvania State University,Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, andGeorg-August University of Göttingen.[15] As of 2019, after upgrades the HET is tied with theKeck Telescopes as the second or thirdlargest telescope in the world. However, its cost was about 20% that of other similarly sized telescopes in use today due to its optimization forspectroscopy.
Additionally, The University of Texas at Austin is a founding partner of the international collaboration to build theGiant Magellan Telescope. McDonald Observatory administrators, scientists, and engineers are heavily involved in the endeavor. Director Taft Armandroff currently serves as Vice Chair to the GMT Board of Directors, and has served as chair.
Currently, the observatory operates fourresearch telescopes at its West Texas site:
A 0.9 m (36 in) telescope, formerly used for research, is now used for visitor programs.[18][19]
The two peaks also host a number of other instruments:
The observatory experiences asemi-arid climate (KöppenBSk) with cool, dry winters and hot, wetter summers.
| Climate data for Mount Locke, Texas (Jan 1, 1935–Mar 31, 2013) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 80 (27) | 79 (26) | 88 (31) | 94 (34) | 96 (36) | 104 (40) | 100 (38) | 104 (40) | 96 (36) | 94 (34) | 82 (28) | 80 (27) | 104 (40) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 53.5 (11.9) | 56.9 (13.8) | 63.7 (17.6) | 71.4 (21.9) | 78.6 (25.9) | 84.5 (29.2) | 82.7 (28.2) | 81.3 (27.4) | 76.6 (24.8) | 70.5 (21.4) | 61.2 (16.2) | 54.4 (12.4) | 69.6 (20.9) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 42.7 (5.9) | 45.4 (7.4) | 51.0 (10.6) | 58.3 (14.6) | 65.5 (18.6) | 71.4 (21.9) | 70.8 (21.6) | 69.8 (21.0) | 65.5 (18.6) | 59.3 (15.2) | 50.0 (10.0) | 44.0 (6.7) | 57.8 (14.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 32.0 (0.0) | 33.9 (1.1) | 38.2 (3.4) | 45.2 (7.3) | 52.4 (11.3) | 58.2 (14.6) | 58.9 (14.9) | 58.4 (14.7) | 54.4 (12.4) | 48.0 (8.9) | 38.7 (3.7) | 33.6 (0.9) | 46.0 (7.8) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −10 (−23) | −6 (−21) | 4 (−16) | 11 (−12) | 26 (−3) | 36 (2) | 40 (4) | 40 (4) | 29 (−2) | 13 (−11) | 8 (−13) | −2 (−19) | −10 (−23) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 0.68 (17) | 0.49 (12) | 0.40 (10) | 0.50 (13) | 1.63 (41) | 2.49 (63) | 3.83 (97) | 3.69 (94) | 2.95 (75) | 1.61 (41) | 0.61 (15) | 0.60 (15) | 19.46 (494) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 1.9 (4.8) | 0.8 (2.0) | 0.2 (0.51) | 0.1 (0.25) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.1 (0.25) | 0.4 (1.0) | 1.2 (3.0) | 4.7 (12) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.001) | 3.75 | 3.13 | 2.62 | 2.77 | 5.93 | 8.75 | 12.00 | 11.56 | 9.32 | 5.91 | 2.94 | 3.29 | 71.45 |
| Source:Western Regional Climate Center,Desert Research Institute[27] | |||||||||||||
TheFrank N. Bash Visitors Center [d], located between Mt. Locke and Mt. Fowlkes, includes a gift shop and interactive exhibit hall. The Visitors Center conducts daily live solar viewings in a large theater and tours of the observatory's largest telescopes. It also hosts eveningstar parties, every Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday evening which allow visitors to look through numerous telescopes of various sizes in the Rebecca Gale Telescope Park.[28]
Special Viewing Nights, during which visitors can stay on-site (not required for the programs) and view directly through eyepieces on the 0.9 m and Struve (2.1m) telescopes, are held on a reservation-only basis.
Located in:Austin, Texas | |||||||||
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