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Where is the Observatory?
McDonald Observatory is located 6,800 feet above sea level atop Mt. Locke in the heart of the Davis Mountains of West Texas.
Almost all of the world's finest ground-based observatories are located on mountains — for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, starlight appears less distorted in the thin atmosphere on mountaintops. (Space-based telescopes such as Hubble and the Gamma-Ray Observatory circumvent the disturbing effects of the atmosphere by flying above it.)
Mountaintops also have unobstructed views of the horizon in all directions. Lastly, most cities and towns — with their accompanying light pollution — are situated in valleys and plains, so remote mountaintops are among the last places on Earth to find the dark skies so sought after by astronomers.
How Far Is It?
McDonald Observatory is located far from the bright lights of the big cities, shown below in a satellite photo of the United States at night.
| City |
Miles |
Kilometers |
| El Paso |
185 |
298 |
| Dallas |
463
|
745 |
| Houston |
528 |
850
|
| Mexico City |
837 |
1,347 |
| Los Angeles |
898 |
1,445
|
| Chicago |
1,205 |
1,939 |
|
New York
|
1,828 |
2,942 |
| London |
5,161 |
8,306 |
| Tokyo |
6,302 |
10,142 |
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