On May 20, 2012, a swath of the midsection of the Western US (and also the Pacific Ocean and Asia) will experience an annular solar eclipse. At 10,600 feet above sea level, the Magdalena Ridge Observatory has one of the best astronomical seeing conditions of any observatory in the United States so, weather permitting, we should be able to enjoy one of the best views of the of the eclipse possible in the entire country. Solar eclipses, whether total or annular, occur when the Moon passes directly between the Sun and the Earth casting its shadow on the Earth. Not […]

Design work has now commenced on the MRO Visitor Center & Maintenance Facility. URS Corporation  and SMPC Architects will provide the engineering and architectural design services. With approval from NM-DOT, a contract was signed and a kick-off meeting took place on Monday, February 13th. This was followed by a site visit and conceptual design workshop at the MRO Offices on the New Mexico Tech campus on February 16th. The MRO Visitor Center & Maintenance Facility will be located at the observatory site in the Magdalena Mountains. The building will be approximately 5500 square feet with both public spaces for visitors to the research site as well as storage and maintenance space for the observatory’s heavy equipment […]