Sharing the Stars: How Two Observatories are Making Utah’s Night Skies More Accessible

Utah is home to more certified International Dark Sky Places than anywhere else in the world – making it the perfect stargazing destination. Whether you’re exploring the mountains of Ogden Valley or the red rock landscapes of Kane County, these observatories are ready to introduce visitors to the universe with unforgettable night sky experiences.

Nestled in the Ogden mountains is the Huntsville Astronomic and Lunar Observatory (HALO). The observatory offers Starwalk Tours Monday through Saturday, allowing guests the opportunity to experience the best of the night sky as it changes each season. Starwalk experiences vary. Some guests bring their own telescopes, while this is others’ introduction to the night sky.

“A lot of people – especially if they come from somewhere by big cities – [have] never seen the sky like this,” says Scott Roberts, a tour guide at HALO. For those beginner star-gazers, Roberts starts by showing visible planets before moving on to look at a few stars.

For visitors seeking a daytime adventure, there’s the Ogden Valley Planet Tour. This 13-mile-long scaled model of the solar system starts with the sun marker, located on the southwest corner of the Compass Rose Lodge grounds. Each planet marker guides guests along to the next – from the sun in the middle of town to Pluto in a more secluded spot.

HALO connects the community of Huntsville to the cosmos, and Roberts loves the role he gets to play as a tour guide. “I am a child of the space race,” Roberts says. “So space has always been really interesting to me. The chance to do this is just a dream come true. I love to tell stories, and I love people.”

Roberts has plenty of memories of observatory visitors over the years; he recalled one man who returned for a second tour despite knowing the program would cover much of the same material. “He said, ‘I don’t care. You changed my life. The whole sky, the scope of the universe — it changed my life,’” Roberts says.

Roberts disagreed with the sentiment. “I didn’t change your life,” he told him. “Maybe the universe changed your life.”

The Stellar Vista Observatory is preparing to be Southern Utah’s new favorite stargazing destination. Construction is currently underway, with phase one currently expected to be finished by the end of this year. Once both phases of construction have been completed, the observatory will be open to the public and offer features including a removable roof and a large, outdoor viewing plaza.

The observatory currently operates without a building, instead using a Google Maps pin to direct guests where to meet up with guides for viewing experiences. “Giving people a place to go legitimizes it to the people that don’t know us,” says Eric Sims, vice president of the Stellar Vista Observatory Board.

The astrotourism industry is booming, according to Sims. Eighty percent of the world’s population lives under light-polluted skies, meaning most of us don’t see too many stars (if any) each night. “We have more demand than we can keep up with – and we don’t advertise,” Sims says.

The observatory also solidifies Kanab’s spot as a Dark Sky destination – a location recognized for its unpolluted night skies – something that the community is very proud of. “A few months ago, we had a conference here in town and the city manager asked everyone to write a love note to your city,” Sims says. Nearly every letter mentioned Kanab’s red rocks or its night sky.

Not only will the observatory expand tourism in Kane County, Stellar Vista also seeks to benefit the community with educational opportunities like training for local teachers and after-school and summer programs for young people in the area.

“The sky is just as much yours as it is anybody else’s,” Sims says. “We try to help people understand that, feel it and connect to it so that they can make it their own.”

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