Domes on Mauna Kea

Observatories at the 4207m (13,803 ft) summit of Mauna Kea on Hawai’i.

• Left to right:
• the NASA Infra-red telescope (3m)
• the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope (3.6m)
• the Gemini North telescope (8.1m)
• the United Kingdom Infra-red Telescope (3.8m)
• the University of Hawai’i 2.2m telescope
• the Hilo Educational Telescope (0.6m).

Note the deep blue of the sky at this altitude.

The WM Keck Observatory

The dome of the Keck-I 10-metre telescope. Its has a twin, just out of shot to the right.

It is staggering to think that the Keck scopes are each twice the size of the Mt Palomar 200-inch Hale reflector. However their mirrors are comprised of 36 segments each, rather than the single monolithic mirror of the Hale. Keck-I began observing in 1993.

Although our group were able to go inside the building, the viewing gallery was not open on the day of our visit – rather disappointing after travelling 7,280 miles and up a 14,000 foot mountain!

Still – it’s an excuse to go back again one day.

The biggest mountain

Although Mauna Kea is ‘only’ 13,803 feet above sea level, most of it is under water. From base to summit it is over 33,000 feet tall (that’s 10,000 metres for those who prefer metric!)

Most of the time the summit is well above the cloud base, as in this shot which also shows the domes of the NASA Infra-red telescope and the Canada-France-Hawaii scope.

Mauna Kea is a dormant volcano, unlike its neighbour Mauna Loa which though not quite as tall is larger in both mass and volume, and remains active. It is the largest volcano on the planet, although this may be challenged by the Tamu Massif in the northwest Pacific, and underwater mid-ocean ridge that may in fact be a single volcano.