Mt. Lemmon Astrophotography Workshop
The beautiful Catalina Mountains just north of Tucson, Arizona, are home to the Mt. Lemmon Sky Center - a science learning center operated by the University of Arizona. The Sky Center offers several activities and programs which are available to the general public. You do not have to be an astronomer to enjoy the views through one of their larger telescopes. The drive up to the Sky Center on the Catalina Highway is one of the most beautiful stretches of road I have ever been on. The design engineers did a fantastic job and included numerous pull-offs where you can soak in the views...
In March of 2013 I had the pleasure of participating in their astronomer night program and in early May of 2014 I was able to attend an astrophotography workshop hosted by Adam Block. A total of 15 astrophotographers from across the country, including a gentleman from Winnipeg, Manitoba, spent three days on the top of Mt. Lemmon learning how to process astronomical images. In the evenings Adam took us to the dome that houses their 32 inch Schulman telescope. We viewed many celestial wonders from galaxies to planetary nebula to globular star clusters. Seeing these in a telescope like the Schulman is truly spectacular. After the viewing session the camera was attached to the telescope and data was gathered for the remainder of the night. The following day we were able to try our hand, with plenty of help from Adam, at processing the data. It was a great hands on experience and one that I will definitely participate in again.
