National Solar Observatory

For more than half a century this location, high above Alamogordo, NM, has been known for its excellent daytime sky quality, both in terms of transparency and seeing.

The Richard B. Dunn Solar Telescope (DST) takes advantage of these conditions to make high resolution observations of the Sun. The DST is the finest instrument of its kind in the world. With 0.2 arc-seconds resolution, the DST has revealed many intricacies of the surface features on the Sun imposed by the complex magnetic fields that dominate that region. The DST is equipped with a wide range of excellent instrumentation, such as the Universal Birefringent Filter and Echelle Spectrograph. The DST has also served as the test bed for the ongoing development of the next generation of solar instrumentation. This new instrumentation includes adaptive optics systems that will greatly reduce the effects of seeing on the solar image.

The National Solar Observatory at Sacramento Peak welcomes visitors during the daytime.The Observatory offers various kinds of tours, including a virtual tour that you can take right now.

The observatory lies in the Lincoln National Forest in the Sacramento Mountains, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico, which offer hiking trails, views of the Tularosa Basin (including White Sands National Monument) and (winter) snow fun. If you are thinking about visiting us, please read the road directions.

Sunspot Astronomy and Visitors Center

The Sunspot Astronomy and Visitor Center first opened its doors in July 1997. It is the result of a collaboration between NSO/Sacramento Peak (our observatory), Apache Point Observatory (our next-door neighbors), and the USDA Forest Service.

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