Mauna Kea Observatories – Hawai’i

During our visit to the Big Island in Hawai’i, we went to the Mauna Kea Observatories. This is one of the most impressive hikes we have ever made.

The Maunakea Observatories are a collaboration of nonprofit independent institutions with telescopes located on Maunakea on the island of Hawai‘i and managed by organizations and countries such as NASA, the University of Hawai’i, Canada, France, the United Kingdom, the Smithsonian, among others. Together, the Observatories make Maunakea the most scientifically productive site for astronomy world-wide. The telescopes on Maunakea are operated by 12 separate nonprofit observatories. Each has its own strengths with varying fields of view and sensitivities to light from radio to ultraviolet wavelengths. They are all important to the scientific productivity of Maunakea.

We decided to do the hike from the top to the bottom, after parking in the Mauna Kea Visitor Information Station. Mauna Kea is the highest mountain in the Pacific Rim and the tallest sea mountain in the world, rising 33,000 feet from the ocean floor. Mauna Kea, literally white mountain, is actually a shortened version of Mauna a Wakea, which links the mountain to the sky god Wakea. Mauna Kea rises to an elevation of 13,803 feet above sea level and is comprised of many cinder cones near its summit. While there is a road to the summit (4WD) and several astronomical observatories there, most of this mountain is untamed and wild.

Some of the photos we took at the summit, as well as during sunset on our way down, are presented below.