McDonald Observatory

McDonald Observatory

The observatory from the southeast. The Hobby–Eberly Telescope on Mt. Fowlkes (left) and the Harlan J. Smith and Otto Struve Telescopes on Mt. Locke (right).
Alternative names	711 MC
Named after	William Johnson McDonald
Organization	University of Texas at Austin
Observatory code	711
Location	Jeff Davis County, Texas
Coordinates	30°40′17″N 104°01′19″W / 30.6714°N 104.022°W / 30.6714; -104.022
Altitude	2,077 m (6,814 ft)
Established	1933
Website	mcdonaldobservatory.org
Telescopes	Frank N. Bash Visitors Center Harlan J. Smith Telescope Hobby–Eberly Telescope Otto Struve Telescope
Location of McDonald Observatory
Related media on Commons
[edit on Wikidata]

McDonald Observatory is an astronomical observatory located near unincorporated community of Fort Davis in Jeff Davis County, Texas, United States. The facility is located on Mount Locke in the Davis Mountains of West Texas, with additional facilities on Mount Fowlkes, approximately 1.3 kilometers (0.81 mi) to the northeast.^[1] The observatory is part of The University of Texas at Austin. It is an organized research unit of the College of Natural Sciences.

The observatory produces StarDate, a daily syndicated radio program consisting of short segments related to astronomy that airs on both National Public Radio and commercial radio stations — about 400 affiliates in all.