Skyscrapers Southern Arizona Trip

May 12-19, 2007

• Kitt Peak National Observatory

  Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), supports the most diverse collection of astronomical observatories on Earth for nighttime optical and infrared astronomy and daytime study of the Sun. Founded in 1958, KPNO operates three major nighttime telescopes, shares site responsibilities with the National Solar Observatory and hosts the facilities of consortia which operate 19 optical telescopes and two radio telescopes. Kitt Peak is located 56 miles southwest of Tucson and has a Visitor Center open daily to the public. Nightly Observing Program also available.

• Kartchner Caverns State Park

  Kartchner Caverns is a stunning limestone cavern system in Southeastern Arizona discovered in 1974 by two amateur cavers from Tucson. It is host to world-class cave formations considered to be the best of their kind in the world.

• Flandrau Science Center

  Stop by after sunset to view the heavens through the 16-inch Cassegrain telescope. Flandrau Science Center's Observatory is open FREE to the public Wednesday through Saturday evenings (weather permitting). The observatory is available for rental on Monday and Tuesday nights (an additional fee applies on other nights).

• San Xavier del Bac Mission

  A historic Spanish mission located about 10 miles south of Tucson on the Tohono O'odham San Xavier Indian Reservation.

• Eastern Arizona College's Discovery Park Campus

  Discovery Park offers you the opportunity to explore 124 acres of scientific, historical, and cultural exhibits. Currently open to visitors is the Gov Aker Observatory, containing a 20-inch optical telescope, the world's largest known Camera Obscura, and many fascinating science exhibits and programs, including a state-of-the-art space simulator ride, the "Shuttlecraft Polaris". Gov Aker Observatory is the official visitors' center for the Mt. Graham International Observatory (MGIO), a division of Steward Observatory, the research arm for the department of astronomy at the University of Arizona.

• Toombstone

  Tombstone is one of the best preserved specimens of the rugged frontier town of the 1870s and '80s. Site of one of the West's richest silver strikes and the "gunfight at the OK Corral", Tombstone epitomizes the legendary reputation of the "Wild West" and lawlessness of the 19th century mining camps.

• Starizona

  Astronomy equipment dealer and free Viewing Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday nights. http://starizona.com/

• City of Bisbee and the Queen Mine

  Don a mining lantern, hat and slicker and ride the mine train deep into the mine and experience the life of the miners as they tell you how they toiled in the subterranean tunnels.

• Pima Air and Space Museum and Titan Missile Museum

  The Pima Air & Space Museum is the largest Air & Space Museum in the Western United States. The Titan Missile Museum is the only publicly accessible Titan II missile site in the nation. When you visit the Titan Missile Museum, you travel through time to stand on the front line of the Cold War.