They are the most magical, darkest, clearest night skies, with maybe one of the largest open, unobstructed views of the heavens in Western U.S. - and that's saying a lot. There are some other really good areas on the other side of the Sierra Nevada's, southeast of Tahoe and north of Mono, but this area is a favorite. Been there twice.
You can see objects with the naked eye that aren't supposed to be visible. I could see nebulae through my friend's 6" scope that you would normally need a 10" scope to see. Astronomers in the nearby White Mountains report, while huffing oxygen, you can see mag 7.2 stars. Apparently, oxygen boosts the performance of the human eye and loading up on it improves your night vision. We were getting close to mag 7.
The place where we camp is just a wide open expanse of knee-high sagebrush. 360 degree panarama views with the nearest peak over 1 mile away, maybe a 15 degree angle to the horizon. So that is something like 160 degrees on the roof - nearly horizon to horizon!! Not much to speak of in the daytime, but at night!!! Look out!!! The air is so free of moisture at the cool 8500 foot elevation and you can see so far into the southern hemisphere that its around 10 degrees above the horizon before you see any noticeable fade. In the summer, it gets flannel shirt and windbreaker cool.
Boy those are some great questions. I think I'll like this place. Thanks for the welcome. |
