Visiting the W.M. Keck Observatory on Mauna Kea was a truly remarkable experience! We spent some much-needed time at the Onizuka Visitor's Center acclimating to the altitude before ascending to the summit. The final ascent is steep and rocky and I was quite glad to have a 4-wheel drive vehicle at my disposal. The evening was bitter cold, but the skies were clear and the moonlight cast a beautiful icy-blue glow over the busy observatory domes. Princess Ducky and Team Snorkasaurus remained on the summit many hours after the other visitors had left, just watching the stars and contemplating the science that the Keck and its neighbors have uncovered during the past two decades. It is easy to understand why Mauna Kea is considered to be a sacred place by the locals, many of whom resent the building of telescopes on its summit. But they have it all wrong! The contributions to our collective knowledge provided by these facilities render Mauna Kea far more sacred, not less. Poli’ahu, the snow-goddess of Mauna Kea, may disagree with my assessment however as she apparently saw fit to steal Princess Ducky's TB dog-tag away while we were visiting her lovely-but-frozen home in the sky...
Pics to come!
This entry was edited by Team Snorkasaurus on Monday, 21 April 2014 at 01:06:50 UTC.
This entry was edited by Team Snorkasaurus on Monday, 21 April 2014 at 02:03:46 UTC.