MAPS/MIRAC Jan. 2024 (2023B) Night 3: Lynx refuge

Tonight we sought refuge from the snow at the Ridge and then in Tucson.

Here’s what we woke up to:

Photo by Bianca. Image description: Telescopes at the ridge in heavy fog.
Staying cozy in the ridge. Photo by Bianca. Image description: A view from inside of a window bay, a bit of a comfy recliner, and a cold cloudy day outside.

We had to clear the Bowl and Summit due to snow accumulation and possible ice. The Ridge was safe, but we also saw that we wouldn’t be opening tonight or tomorrow, and there aren’t enough rooms at the Ridge, so we decided to go down to Tucson. If the weather clears up we’ll go back up on Tuesday for our last night.

Animal of the day:

The lynx is a genus of medium-sized wild cats.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynx

And here’s Lynx, a medium-sized domestic cat who likes to do astrophysics and help close the MAPS AO loop with CACAO: