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21-515: As of 2022 there have been three "Decadals", one published in 2002 for the decade from 2003 to 2013, one in 2011 for 2013 to 2022, and one in 2022 for 2023 to 2032. The survey for 2023 to 2032 was released on April 19, 2022. New Frontiers in the Solar System: An Integrated Exploration Strategy , published in 2003, mapped out a plan for the decade from 2003 to 2013. The committee producing the survey

42-653: Is a United States astronomical observatory located on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona - Sonoran Desert on the Tohono Oʼodham Nation , 88 kilometers (55 mi) west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona . With more than twenty optical and two radio telescopes, it is one of the largest gatherings of astronomical instruments in the Earth's northern hemisphere. Kitt Peak National Observatory

63-578: The Galileo Imaging Science Team in high-resolution imaging studies of Venus , Jupiter , Jupiter's moons Io , Europa , Ganymede and Callisto , Earth's Moon as well as asteroids Ida , Gaspra , and Dactyl . The team also studied the collision of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter. This United States astronomer article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kitt Peak National Observatory The Kitt Peak National Observatory ( KPNO )

84-892: The Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy . The land was leased from the Tohono Oʼodham under a perpetual agreement. The second director (1960 to 1971) was Nicholas U. Mayall . In 1982, NOAO was formed to consolidate the management of three optical observatories — Kitt Peak; the National Solar Observatory facilities at Kitt Peak and Sacramento Peak , New Mexico ; and the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile . The observatory sites are under lease from

105-662: The Juno Jupiter orbiter, and the OSIRIS-REx near-Earth orbit sample return mission. Origins, Worlds, and Life: A Decadal Strategy for Planetary Science and Astrobiology 2023-2032 (2022) was published on April 19, 2022. The report recommended the Uranus Orbiter and Probe as the highest priority new Flagship Mission, and the Enceladus Orbilander as the second-highest. It recommended continuing

126-512: The Mayall 4 meter telescope and the WIYN 3.5-meter telescope ; there are also several two- and one-meter class telescopes. The McMath–Pierce solar telescope was for many decades the largest solar telescope in the world and the largest unobstructed reflector (no secondary mirror in the path of incoming light). The ARO 12m Radio Telescope is also at the location. Kitt Peak is famous for hosting

147-482: The inner planets ( Mercury , Venus , and the Moon ), Mars (not including Phobos and Deimos ), the gas giant planets, satellites ( Galilean satellites , Titan , and other satellites of the giant planets) and primitive bodies (asteroids, comets, Phobos , Deimos , Pluto / Charon and other Kuiper belt objects , meteorites , and interplanetary dust ). Mission & Technology Studies: The recommendation for

168-728: The Chair of the 2002 Planetary Science Decadal Survey guiding NASA and other US Government Agencies plans for solar system exploration. Belton studied first at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland and earned his PhD at the University of California at Berkeley for his doctoral thesis on "The Interaction of Type II Comet Tails with the Interplanetary Medium". Belton was born in Bognor Regis , England. He led

189-584: The New Frontiers program was a selection from one of Comet Surface Sample Return, Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin Sample Return, Saturn Probe, Trojan Tour and Rendezvous, and Venus In Situ Explorer. Then another selection adding Io Observer, Lunar Geophysical Network (for NF 4 and 5). In the 2011 response from NASA to the review, NASA supported the New Frontiers recommendations. The first three New Frontiers missions include New Horizons to Pluto flyby,

210-725: The Tohono O'odham Nation at the amount of a quarter dollar per acre yearly, which was overwhelmingly approved by the Council in the 1950s. In 2005, the Tohono O'odham Nation brought suit against the National Science Foundation to stop further construction of gamma ray detectors in the Gardens of the Sacred Tohono O'odham Spirit I'itoi, which are just below the summit. The largest optical instruments at KPNO are

231-617: The United States was dedicated on March 16, 1960. At the dedication a 36-inch telescope and various facilities were ready. Construction was underway for the then planned 84 inch telescope. (i.e. the KPNO 2.1 meter) The 84 inch (2.1 m) had its first light in September 1964. Over the decades the mountaintop hosted many telescopes, and achieved a variety of discoveries. Some examples of astronomical research KPNO contributed to include

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252-562: The country, at lunar and planetary conferences, and made available publicly on the NASA website and via the National Academies Press . The report differed from previous reports in that it included a "brutally honest" budgetary review from a 3rd party contractor. The report highlighted a new Mars rover, a mission to Jupiter's moon Europa , and a mission to Uranus and its moons as proposed Flagship Missions . The Mars mission

273-573: The first telescope (an old 91 cm reflector) used to search for near-Earth asteroids , and calculating the probability of an impact with planet Earth . Kitt Peak hosts an array of programs for the public to take part in, including: Kitt Peak's Southeastern Association for Research and Astronomy (SARA) Telescope was featured in the WIPB-PBS documentary, "Seeing Stars in Indiana". The project followed SARA astronomers from Ball State University to

294-467: The following missions: Primitive bodies: Inner planets: Mars: Giant planets: Large satellites: Primitive bodies: Mars: Outer planets: Large satellites: Visions and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013 – 2022 (2011) was published in prepublication form on March 7, 2011, and in final form later that year. Draft versions of the document were presented at town hall meetings around

315-514: The observatory and featured time-lapse images from various points around Kitt Peak. A major project started in the 2010s is the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) for the 4-meter Mayall telescope, for conducting spectrographic astronomical surveys of distant galaxies probing the expansion history of the universe and the mysterious physics of dark energy . The Kitt Peak National Observatory of

336-584: The ongoing Mars Sample Return program as the highest priority overall, subject to cost restraints. The report recommended several different possible mission concepts for the sixth New Frontiers mission: Michael J. Belton Michael J. S. Belton (September 29, 1934 – June 4, 2018) was President of Belton Space Exploration Initiatives and Emeritus Astronomer at the Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona. Belton served as

357-599: The study of dark matter , cosmic distances , high-redshift galaxies, and the Boötes Void . In addition, the observatory has engaged in variety of public outreach and education programs. In 2018, KPNO established plans for its Windows on the Universe Center for Astronomy Outreach. In 1976 the Mayall Telescope was used to discover methane ice on Pluto . The 90 cm Spacewatch telescope

378-487: The summit at 2 a.m. on Friday, June 17. Four non-scientific buildings, including a dormitory, were lost in the fire. As of Monday, June 20, the extent of damage to the telescopes is still being assessed. Kitt Peak was selected by its first director, Aden B. Meinel , in 1958 as the site for a national observatory under contract with the National Science Foundation (NSF) and was administered by

399-587: Was founded in 1958. It is home to what was the largest solar telescope in the world, and many large astronomical telescopes of the late 20th century in the United States. The observatory was administered by the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) from the early 1980s until 2019, after which it was overseen by NOIRLab . In June 2022, the Contreras Fire led to the evacuation of Kitt Peak. The fire reached

420-467: Was given highest priority, followed by the Europa mission. The Mars rover proposal was called MAX-C and it would store samples for eventual return to Earth, but the method of return was left open. It only recommended the rover mission if it could be done cheaply enough (US$ 2.5 billion). The committee producing the survey was led by Steve Squyres of Cornell University and included 5 panels focusing on

441-664: Was led by Michael J. Belton . Five panels focused on the inner planets , Mars , the giant planets , large satellites and astrobiology . The survey placed heavy emphasis on Mars exploration including the Mars Exploration Rovers , established the New Frontiers program including New Horizons mission to study Pluto and established programs in power and propulsion to lay a technological basis for programs in later decades including crewed missions beyond Earth orbit. The paper suggested that NASA should prioritize

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