Mt. Graham Observatory

Mt. Graham

Mt. Graham (10,742 ft; 3269 m) is a ~4 hour drive northeast from Mt. Lemmon. Depending on weather and level of fire danger, our Advanced Teen Campers take an overnight trip here to experience one of the most modern observatories in the world with even darker skies and larger telescopes.

Campers use the 10 m Submillimeter radio telescope (SMT) around the clock to measure emissions from organic molecules in “clouds” and regions of star-planet formation. We see the 22.8 m Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) in action and reside inside. We also explore the Vatican Observatory’s 1.8 m Advanced Technology Telescope (VATT) and contemplate the origin of life and the relationship between science and religion.

	August 2026
Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
					1 ⭐Shaula Evening Culmination ⭐Shaula Evening Culmination 01 Aug 2026 The bright star Shaula crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view this star in the evening sky. Shaula is the second-brightest star system in the constellation of Scorpius, and one of the brightest stars in the night sky. See more details	2
3	4 M72 Midnight Culmination M72 Midnight Culmination Messier Object M72 crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) at Midnight Standard Time (1am Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the object. Details	5	6 Last quarter 2:21am Last quarter 2:21am 06 Aug 2026 See more details M73 Midnight Culmination M73 Midnight Culmination Messier Object M73 crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) at Midnight Standard Time (1am Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the object. Details	7	8	9
10 🌞Sun Enters Constellation Leo 🌞Sun Enters Constellation Leo 10 Aug 2026 See more details	11 ☄Perseids Meteor Shower Peaks ☄Perseids Meteor Shower Peaks 11 Aug 2026 The Perseids are the most popular meteor shower as they peak on warm August nights as seen from the northern hemisphere. The Perseids are active from July 17 to August 24. They reach a strong maximum on August 12 or 13, depending on the year. Normal rates seen from rural locations range from 50-75 shower members per hour at maximum.The Perseids are particles released from comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle during its numerous returns to the inner solar system. They are called Perseids since the radiant (the area of the sky where the meteors seem to originate) is located near the prominent constellation of Perseus the hero when at maximum activity. https://www.amsmeteors.org/ See more details	12 New moon 5:37pm New moon 5:37pm 12 Aug 2026 See more details	13	14 M15 Midnight Culmination M15 Midnight Culmination Messier Object M15 crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) at Midnight Standard Time (1am Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the object. Details M2 Midnight Culmination M2 Midnight Culmination Messier Object M2 crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) at Midnight Standard Time (1am Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the object. Details M39 Midnight Culmination M39 Midnight Culmination Messier Object M39 crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) at Midnight Standard Time (1am Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the object. Details	15 ⭐Constellation Corona Australis Evening Culmination ⭐Constellation Corona Australis Evening Culmination 15 Aug 2026 The constellation Corona Australis crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the constellation in the evening sky. Corona Australis is a constellation in the Southern Celestial Hemisphere. Its Latin name means "southern crown", and it is the southern counterpart of Corona Borealis, the northern crown. See more details ⭐Constellation Lyra Evening Culmination ⭐Constellation Lyra Evening Culmination 15 Aug 2026 The constellation Lyra crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the constellation in the evening sky. Lyra is a small constellation. It is one of the 48 listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and is one of the modern 88 constellations. Lyra was often represented on star maps as a vulture or an eagle carrying a lyre, an instrument similar to a harp. It's brightest star, Vega, is one of the brightest stars in the sky. See more details ⭐Constellation Scutum Evening Culmination ⭐Constellation Scutum Evening Culmination 15 Aug 2026 The constellation Scutum crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the constellation in the evening sky. Scutum is a small constellation. Its name is Latin for shield, and it was originally named Scutum Sobiescianum by Johannes Hevelius in 1684. It lies entirely in the southern celestial hemisphere and its four brightest stars form a narrow diamond shape. It is one of the 88 IAU designated constellations defined in 1922. See more details	16 M30 Midnight Culmination M30 Midnight Culmination Messier Object M30 crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) at Midnight Standard Time (1am Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the object. Details
17 ☄kappa-Cygnids Minor Meteor Shower Peaks ☄kappa-Cygnids Minor Meteor Shower Peaks For the latest information on meteor showers visit: https://www.amsmeteors.org/ Details ⭐Vega Evening Culmination ⭐Vega Evening Culmination 17 Aug 2026 The bright star Vega crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view this star in the evening sky. Vega is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Lyra. This star is relatively close at only 25 light-years (7.7 parsecs) from the Sun, and, together with Arcturus and Sirius, one of the most luminous stars in the Sun's neighborhood. It is the fifth-brightest star in the night sky, and the second-brightest star in the northern celestial hemisphere, after Arcturus. See more details	18	19	20 First quarter 2:46am First quarter 2:46am 20 Aug 2026 See more details ⭐Constellation Sagittarius Evening Culmination ⭐Constellation Sagittarius Evening Culmination 20 Aug 2026 The constellation Sagittarius crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the constellation in the evening sky. Sagittarius is one of the constellations of the zodiac and is located in the Southern celestial hemisphere. It is one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy and remains one of the 88 modern constellations. Its old astronomical symbol is. Its name is Latin for "archer". See more details	21	22	23
24 ⭐Constellation Telescopium Evening Culmination ⭐Constellation Telescopium Evening Culmination 24 Aug 2026 The constellation Telescopium crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the constellation in the evening sky. Telescopium is a minor constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere, one of twelve named in the 18th century by French astronomer Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille and one of several depicting scientific instruments. Its name is a Latinized form of the Greek word for telescope. See more details	25 ⭐Constellation Pavo Evening Culmination ⭐Constellation Pavo Evening Culmination 25 Aug 2026 The constellation Pavo crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the constellation in the evening sky. Pavo is a constellation in the southern sky whose name is Latin for "peacock". See more details	26	27	28 Full moon 4:18am Full moon 4:18am 28 Aug 2026 See more details	29	30 ⭐Constellation Aquila Evening Culmination ⭐Constellation Aquila Evening Culmination 30 Aug 2026 The constellation Aquila crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the constellation in the evening sky. Aquila is a constellation on the celestial equator. Its name is Latin for 'eagle' and it represents the bird that carried Zeus/Jupiter's thunderbolts in Greek-Roman mythology. Its brightest star, Altair, is one vertex of the Summer Triangle asterism. See more details ⭐Constellation Sagitta Evening Culmination ⭐Constellation Sagitta Evening Culmination 30 Aug 2026 The constellation Sagitta crosses the Meridian (reaches its highest point in the sky) this evening at 9pm Standard Time (10pm Daylight Saving Time) making this the best time of year to view the constellation in the evening sky. Sagitta is a dim but distinctive constellation in the northern sky. Its name is Latin for 'arrow', not to be confused with the significantly larger constellation Sagittarius 'the archer'. See more details
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Mt. Graham Observatory

Mt. Graham

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