McDonald Observatory, Texas

Observatory atop Mount Locke in West Texas, with several optical and radio telescopes. NASA and the University of Texas operate a 107" scope used primarily for spectroscopic analysis of distant bodies; a lunar occultation scope, used to observe stars as they are eclipsed by the moon; a laser ranging scope to measure distances; the Hobby-Ebely Telescope, which, with 91 hexagonal mirrors totaling 36 feet, is the world's largest mirror scope; and a radio telescope dish that is part of the Very Long Baseline Array, a series of antennas that are located from the Northeast to Hawaii.