Update January 2022
We are currently not hosting public visitors to the summit or base facilities. With the continuously evolving nature of the pandemic, we currently do not have a reopening date. We will update this page when a reopening date is available. The timeline may be different for each site.
Welcome to the reservation page for the Youth Group Overnight (YGO).
Treat your youth group to an unforgettable night of stargazing at Kitt Peak. First, participate in the Nightly Observing Program (NOP) where you’ll learn the night sky with planispheres and binoculars, and spend an hour at the telescope, observing spectacular deep-sky objects. When the other guests depart, your group may continue to use the telescope for as long as they can stay awake. Our team will gladly help personalize your program according to your group’s needs and interests, whether they involve observing certain types of objects or working on astronomy badges for Scouts. You can even add on astrophotography and create some truly incredible souvenir photos. When it’s time to sleep, the group will use their own bedding to camp out in the visitor center, with staff in rooms nearby. At least two adults must accompany the group throughout the night.
In the morning, your group will assist in organizing the visitor center in time for its opening at 9:00 A.M. When they leave the group will take with them memories of an amazing night of astronomy at Kitt Peak National Observatory.
Nightly Observing Program: $50/person up to 15 guests
$43/person for 16 to 25 guests
Overnight use of telescope: $500
Astrophotography add-on: $150
For program availability, please submit your group size, two dates for your program, and any special program requests to Robert Wilson at rwilson@noao.edu. Once availability has been confirmed, you will receive instructions for completing your reservation. Please try to book at least two months in advance.
The visitor center must be notified no less than forty-eight hours in advance of changes to your group’s size. Changes to your meal request, included in the price of the NOP, must be made no less than twenty-four hours in advance.
A credit card is required to hold your reservation but will not be charged prior to the program. Payment in full will be made upon your arrival at the Visitor Center and must be a single payment for the group. We cannot accept purchase orders. Checks should be made payable to AURA. No-shows and cancellations less than ten days prior to the program will be charged a fee equal to fifty percent of the total program cost, the exception being cancellations by us because of hazardous conditions.
Bring warm clothing. It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. You will spend much of your time outside. Temperatures on Kitt Peak are often 15 to 20 degrees cooler than temperatures in Tucson.
The program includes a light meal, and you may choose either a turkey (regular) or vegetarian sandwich. If you have dietary restrictions, you are welcome to bring your own meal. The kitchen cannot guarantee gluten free, allergen free, or otherwise specially prepared meals. The program fee is the same in either case. Groups are encouraged to bring snacks and may eat a quick breakfast on the visitor-center patio prior to leaving.
All nighttime programs at Kitt Peak are weather dependent. Please be available for a phone call at about noon on the day of the program. We will inform you of the status of the program for that evening, based on the forecasts available at the time of the call. Staff will discuss your options at that time in the event of unfavorable weather conditions.
To help prevent the spread of the virus causing Covid-19, we have closed the observatory and the mountain road to the public, and cancelled all upcoming public programs. Please do not travel up the mountain road for any reason, or by any means. If you are scheduled for programs in the next few months, please check back before traveling to Arizona, or traveling up the mountain.
Kitt Peak is first and foremost a research facility. To avoid interfering with research during nighttime programs, the Visitor Center adheres to strict lighting control procedures.
Your vehicle’s headlights will be covered. When you leave after any evening program, you will be guided by an observatory vehicle for one mile down the mountain road. After that first mile, staff will remove the headlight covers for you.
Guests may not leave the programs early except in cases of genuine emergency. By making a reservation in any of our nighttime programs, you indicate your understanding of and willingness to abide by these procedures.
No one may visit the observatory after 4:00 P.M. unless registered for a nighttime program.
