The Moore Observatory is located on the Pasco campus. Our main telescope is a 16-inch Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube assembly on a Paramount ME German equatorial mount. The telescope is housed in a six-meter Ash Dome on top of a 25-foot by 40-foot observatory building.
CBC lies at 46 degrees 15' 8.4" latitude and west longitude at 119 degrees 07' 36.5", at an altitude of 407 feet. Our climate is dry and warm in the summer, dry and temperate in the spring and fall, and mostly dry but often foggy in the winter months. We have endless nights of clear skies.
The observatory was developed through the generous donation of the late Robert (Bob) Moore and his late wife, Elisabeth.
Our main focus is the use of the observatory as a teaching aid for our astronomy curriculum. We allow use of the observatory for elementary, middle, and high school programs, as well as for student and other clubs interested in astronomy.
Astronomy Courses
For information about the Astronomy program at CBC, visit our
Astronomy page.
Planetarium
The Bechtel National Planetarium is now open at CBC. For more information, visit our
Planetarium page.
Astronomy Links
Tri-City Astronomy Club
NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day
NASA Stargazing Monthly Videos
Tonight's Sky
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What's Up?
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Spot the International Space Station
Events
The Messier Marathon scheduled for April 13 has been rescheduled for next Friday (April 20) and we are hoping for better weather at that time. Again this event is open to the public and will be an all night event which begins at 8:00pm. A "Messier Marathon" involves finding as many "Messier" objects in one night as possible.
"Messier" objects are a list of galaxies, nebulae, globular clusters, and open clusters that was established by Charles Messier (a famous French astronomer who lived from 1730-1817). We hope to have a good time
despite the light pollution present in Pasco. We do have a fall back date of the following Friday (April 20) if it is cloudy on the 13th.
The observatory is open to the general public on Friday nights from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. On Friday there isn't anyone in the office and you can call Mike Brady at 509-420-3488.
The observatory closes Thanksgiving week for the winter and reopens in the spring on the first Friday of March. The winter months are too cloudy and cold for public viewing at the observatory.
Private events can be held at the observatory by appointment. See contact information below to schedule an appointment.
Astronomy Photo of the Month
Photo by Mike Brady.
And by the way... Keep looking up, the stars are there for you.