McDonald Observatory is a popular destination for Spring Breakers across the country. To serve as many visitors as possible, we will offer an altered schedule of modified programming from March 8-22. This includes extra Star Parties.

McDonald Observatory is accessible to the public Tuesday – Saturday 12-5 pm, and is closed on Sunday and Monday. All visitors must check in at the Frank N Bash Visitor Center. Check the calendar for available program passes, which are subject to capacity limits.

Important: McDonald Observatory, part of the University of Texas at Austin, is located 450 miles west of Austin and is on Central Time. Use the tools below to buy passes. The system defaults to one adult pass. If you don't need that pass, click the number field and select zero.

McDonald Observatory is a research unit of The University of Texas at Austin and one of the world's leading centers for astronomical research, teaching, and public education and outreach.

Reservations are required for all programs and access to the McDonald Observatory site.

*The Observatory reserves the right to ask visitors to leave the program venue if their behavior becomes disruptive. Programs may be cancelled at any time due to weather or public health concerns. Evening programs take place mostly outdoors.

Experience an up-close look at large research telescopes at McDonald Observatory. The program includes general admission to the Visitors Center and a guided tour of two of our research telescopes (approximately 90-120-minutes).

Apr 9, 2017 · FORT DAVIS, Texas — The world’s third-largest telescope, the 10-meter Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) located at McDonald Observatory in West Texas, has completed a multiyear $40 Million upgrade to enable it to take on the biggest challenges in astronomy today: unraveling the mystery of dark energy, probing distant galaxies and black holes ...

Apr 7, 2022 · FORT DAVIS, Texas, U.S. and COAHUILA, Mexico — The University of Texas at Austin’s McDonald Observatory, The Nature Conservancy – Davis Mountain Preserve, and the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) are pleased to announce the certification of the Greater Big Bend International Dark Sky Reserve.

Dust is all around us: at home, on Earth, and in space. Explore the properties of dust and the astronomical research of dust in space with these three grade-appropriate, inquiry-based activities from McDonald Observatory. Planet Tours Subjects: Our Solar System Grade Levels: 6-8