Plan a visit to the Buckhorn Observatory

I knew founder and resident astronomer John Crossen when he was Mr Wonderful, a talented advertising copywriter. Quite a leap from there to the stars, but John has done it beautifully. He and Debbie live right beside their unique and world-recognized Buckhorn Observatory. They share the house with cats (4 at the moment) and a deaf white rabbit they rescued.

Our friend and today’s driver, Brian Hickey is a long-time friend of the Crossens. We owe our visit to him … just to chat today, which is very easy to do with John and Debbie. It wasn’t a star-gazing day, more of an equipment viewing thing.
Look at the size of that telescope! The roof retracts too, sliding out onto the frame you see at the end of the long building. There is a “warm room” holding photography equipment, walls full of framed pictures of notables who have visited. You can see the dome of another observing station alongside the main building.

All of the equipment is shared with the public through low-cost, scheduled tours. John is on hand to educate and inspire, in very accessible terms, and his knowledge is impressive.

Brian models one of the quality Buckhorn hats we received from John. The aliens entertain kids that come through the observatory. One of John’s chief purposes is to engage young people in astronomy.
We plan to take one of the tours when the weather is better. What an amazing thing to have, so close to the city!