Tag Archives: Mauna Kea

Snow on Mauna Kea

Snow on Mauna Kea seen from Waimea.

Ah Hawaii, a place of golden sandy beaches, warm tropical waters, luxuriant foliage and snow-capped peaks. Wait a minute! Snow? In Hawaii?

It’s true. Here on the Big Island, Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea are high enough to see snowfall most years. People go up there to ski and tube. There’s a local tradition of driving up the mountain, loading a pickup truck with snow, and then driving back to lower elevations for a snowball fight.

This winter’s first snow fell yesterday. Last year, there was a snowfall in July! This photo is from last winter, taken from Waimea, which as the foreground suggests, is paniolo (cowboy) country.

This is one image where I photoshopped something out, in this case a distracting wire trailing above the building’s roofline.

James Clerk Maxwell Telescope

The JCMT from the outside with its huge Gore-Tex tarp curving up and in. The tarp protects the dish from wind and blown sand. It also reflects visible and near-infrared radiation which allows for daytime observations.
The JCMT from the outside with its huge Gore-Tex tarp curving up and in. The tarp protects the dish from wind and blown sand. It also reflects visible and near-infrared radiation which allows for daytime observations.
The dish of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea.
The dish of the telescope. The shinier areas are where telescope staff experimented with cleaning the dish using Swiffer Sweepers. A little dirt on the dish doesn’t affect readings at the wavelengths where the JCMT operates.
The framework supporting the dish of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea.
The framework which supports the telescope’s dish.

I posted here about a visit to the Canada-France-Hawaii-Telescope on Mauna Kea as part of the Kama‘āina Observatory Experience being offered by the island’s observatories. The other observatory visited during that tour was the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT).

The JCMT began operation in 1987 and was funded by the United Kingdom, Canada and the Netherlands. However, the United Kingdom decided to improve how it handled its scientific funding and, as a result, early in 2015, the JCMT’s funding efficiently disappeared into deep space and was never seen again. Subesequently, as one of the guides on the tour said, they basically put the telescope on Craigslist and the East Asian Observatory (EAO) picked up the operation.

The telescope is the largest single-dish telescope in the world dedicated to detecting submillimetre radiation. Other telescopes on Mauna Kea operate at different wavelengths so they are complimentary each other rather than in direct competition. And where other telescopes on Mauna Kea are there because of the 300+ nights of clear skies, the JCMT is there for the lack of moisture in the air, which is critical to its operations.

Inside the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea.
The exterior of the structure rotates on wheels enclosed in yellow housings. Inside, the dish rotates independently.

As well as information about the telescope’s operations, the tour included a story about how the steel for telescope’s enclosure had to be sent from England on a small ship after the original freighter broke down. The steel was piled high on deck and was supposed to be headed direct to Hawaii. But the ship’s captain stopped first in Holland to take on a cargo of high explosives! Besides the delay this involved, it also presented problems when the ship arrived at the Panama Canal, for obvious reasons. More delays ensued before the ship disappeared to some port on the Pacific coast to offload the explosives. By the time it arrived in Hawaii, it was so far behind schedule that the penalties accrued for late delivery practically equaled the fee for delivery. However, the ship’s captain, in an apparently canny tactic, waited outside territorial waters and demanded full payment, threatening to dump the steel into the sea if he didn’t get it. This proved to be a bad move! The telescope’s operators took him to court and nailed him for piracy on the high seas. The U.S. Coastguard moved in, took over the ship, and guided it into port of Hilo.

Another story from the telescope’s beginnings concerned the opening ceremony. Several VIPs from the nations operating the telescope turned up, including Prince Philip. When the lever was pulled to start the telescope’s operation, nothing happened. Turned out one of the VIP’s was leaning against an emergency stop button.

For more information on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope, go to eaobservatory.org/jcmt/about-jcmt/
For more information on the Kama’āina Observatory Experience, go to kamaainaobservatoryexperience.org/

Star formation images from the constellation of Orion from the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea.
Star formation images from the constellation of Orion.
The small mirror in the Cassegrain cabin of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea.
The small mirror in the Cassegrain cabin, which directs incoming information to the appropriate instruments.

Canada-France-Hawaii-Telescope on Mauna Kea

A view from the Canada-France- Hawaii Telescope on Mauna Kea
From the CFHT catwalk, some of the other telescopes atop Mauna Kea. From left: CalTech Submillimeter Telescope, James Clerk Maxwell Telescope, Smithsonian Submillimeter Array, Suburu Telescope, W. M. Keck Observatory (I and II), and the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility.
The interior of the Canada-France- Hawaii Telescope
The steel arms attached to the giant horseshoe, which enable the telescope to pivot. The telescope itself is in the vertical plane, with the mirror in the circular enclosure at the bottom, surrounded by instruments.
The interior of the Canada-France- Hawaii Telescope
The huge steel arms which support the telescope.
Doug Simons, Executive Director of the CFHT, explains details of the telescope’s control room. Note the analog instruments, above and to the left of his head, which register conditions outside the building, a reflection the telescope’s late 1970’s roots.
Doug Simons, Executive Director of the CFHT, explains details of the telescope’s control room. Note the analog instruments, above and to the left of his head, which register conditions outside the building, a reflection the telescope’s late 1970’s roots.

The Kama‘āina Observatory Experience was introduced by President Obama at the White House Astronomy Night in October 2015. The idea is for people who live on the Big Island and elsewhere in the state, to have an opportunity to visit the telescopes and learn a bit about what they do, as well as learn about the natural history and cultural significance of Mauna Kea.

Last weekend, I got the opportunity to take part and the Canada-France-Hawaii-Telescope (CFHT) was the first telescope visited. The telescope dates back to 1979 as is seen in the massive steel arms of the telescope and some of the instrumentation in the control room – love those analog weather instruments in the top row.

The age of the telescope doesn’t mean it’s unsuitable for the modern era. CHFT is a 3.6 meter optical/infrared telescope, but while the mirror and its housing is old school, the supporting instruments are the latest in high tech. And nowadays, like most of the telescopes on the mountain, no one needs to be there overnight; they’re operated remotely.

While a good deal of the information went over my head, and out toward the stars, it was a thoroughly worthwhile experience. I’d recommend it to anyone, but you have to be kama‘āina, a Hawaii resident.

For more information on the Canada-France-Hawaii-Telescope, go to cfht.hawaii.edu/
For more information on the Kama’āina Observatory Experience, go to kamaainaobservatory
experience.org/

The planned Thirty Meter Telescope site on Mauna Kea

Thirty Meter Telescope site on Mauna Kea
This is where the planned Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) is supposed to be built. I say ‘supposed to’ because the project is currently going in reverse. Construction should have started in April of last year, but protests derailed that. Then two court decisions late last year mean the permitting process has to start again. As it stands right now, The TMT people have said they need approved permits by early next year. In the meantime, alternative sites are being checked out, in case things don’t come together.

Personally, I don’t think the telescope will be built here. The protesters aren’t going to go away, I don’t think there’s the will in Hawaii officialdom to get it done, and I don’t think the TMT people want to do what it will take, which would leave them looking like the bad guys running roughshod over Hawaiian cultural practices.

It’s more complicated than this of course, but if I were a betting man, I know where my money would go.

What goes up Mauna Kea …

The trail starts just below the loop road that links the telescopes.

The trail starts just below the loop road that links the telescopes.

Lake Waiau.

Lake Waiau.

The trail passes through unforgiving landscape. Two hikes are just visible at the top center.

The trail passes through unforgiving landscape. Two hikers are just visible at the top center.

Looking across at Mauna Loa. The trail is visible at bottom left.

Mauna Kea silverswords grow in the otherwise barren cinder landscape.

Mullein, Verbascum thapsus, grows in the otherwise barren cinder landscape.

I took a hike on Mauna Kea recently. I’ve been up the mountain before in the car and I’ve done a hike or two going around the volcano. This time I thought I’d tackle the Summit Trail. The trail starts at the Mauna Kea Visitor Center at about 9,250 feet and goes 6 miles to the summit at about 13,800 feet. That’s around 4,550 feet of elevation gain. It’s also high altitude, which means it’s not an easy trail.

My plan was to ‘try out’ the trail. I figured if I made a one-way trip it would give me a good insight about whether to try the round trip. My idea was to get a ride from the visitor center to the top, then hike down, because that has to be easier than going up, doesn’t it? Cue ominous music.

I got to the visitor center before opening time and spent an hour acclimating to the altitude. I chatted with one of the volunteers at the desk and she said she preferred the hike UP the mountain. She asked if I had walking sticks, which I didn’t. Tactfully, she didn’t follow up by asking about next of kin. At least the weather was good – sunny and dry, but cool.

By starting early I’d hoped I might snag a ride with a work vehicle heading up to the telescopes that dot the summit. They all passed me by, either fully loaded or, I suspect, forbidden from picking up hitchhikers. That gave me a problem. I’d just left the visitor center and knew there were no 4-wheel-drive vehicles there, which is what visitors going to the summit should be driving. I couldn’t expect a ride until one arrived and the occupants had acclimated as I had. Faced with the prospect of waiting an hour or more I headed off up the trail. I could hike the first ¾ mile, to where it passed close to the road again, and try and get a ride from there.

The trail started off up a rough dirt road that quickly transitioned to a trail. When I say up, I mean up. Mauna Kea is shaped like a classic volcano. It looks, and is, steep.

I huffed and puffed up the slope, feet slipping on the loose cinder underfoot. I began to understand what the woman at the visitor center meant; coming down would be treacherous. Going up was hard work too, but at least I felt I’d earned the frequent stops to recover and appreciate how much elevation had been gained.

I reached the road at around 10,200 feet and soon got a ride to the top. The actual summit of Mauna Kea is along a short trail across from one of the parking areas. I didn’t take it this time having been there before. Instead, I headed off on the road that loops around the top. It’s a surreal place, a barren, windswept, cinder landscape dotted with high-tech telescopes gathering information from the farthest reaches of the universe.

The trail down starts just below where the road begins its loop. It’s easy going at first, through a small valley, over a ridge and down a steeper bit to a saddle. This is where the main trail intersects another one heading to Lake Waiau. Lake Waiau is a small, somewhat perplexing lake. At 13,000 feet it sits on a volcano made up of highly permeable rock at an elevation where it gets very little in the way of rainfall. It’s not entirely clear why the lake exists at all though it undoubtedly does. The day I was there, it appeared quite full and green.

After the side trip to the lake, I started down again. Almost immediately I missed the trail down. I thought it intersected the Lake Waiau trail toward the road, but I soon realized that wasn’t true. So I angled across to the right one over loose lava, slipping often, but finally regaining the proper track.

Soon after, I met two other hikers who I’d seen in the parking lot earlier. They were hiking the round trip, up and down. We chatted a while before they continued. They were younger and fitter than I, though their conversation had left me with the impression that they weren’t looking forward to the return journey.

It’s a steady downhill slog, mostly with a loose surface underfoot (at one point I fell, my feet slipping out from under me, luckily leaving me with nothing worse than a couple of scrapes on one hand). I’d like to say the effort was worth it for the views, but the truth is, I can’t. Across the saddle, is Mauna Loa, which is a bigger volcano than Mauna Kea, but doesn’t look it. Mauna Loa (which means ‘long mountain’) has enormous mass, but not striking, steep sides. Otherwise, I was looking mostly at my feet or the same kind of landscape I was walking on.

This was one of those hikes where I kept thinking that the place where the trail passed close to the road where I’d got my ride, must be just over the next ridge. But one ridge followed another and there were several of them before that observation became true. Then I was back on territory I’d climbed up that morning. The woman at the visitor center was right: it was easier going up.

When I got back to my car, a visitor there asked me about the hike, whether it was worth it. “No,” I said. He was disappointed. He was keen on the hike; his partner, less so. But the truth is, it’s a slog up and down over a barren, cinder landscape. Yes, there are plusses. There’s a stark beauty in the place and the lake is worth it. But, to me, it’s more for the person who likes to be able to say ‘Yeah, I did that hike.’

For more information about the Mauna Kea Summit Trail and Lake Waiau, go to bigislandhikes.com/mauna-kea and ifa.hawaii.edu/info/vis/visiting-mauna-kea/hiking.

 

Nearly there. The visitor center and road is visible on the left.

Nearly there. The visitor center and road is visible to the left of the red cinder cone.