TUCSON, Ariz. -- For years, the clear skies and minimal lights of the nighttime Southern Arizona desert has attracted major astronomy facilities to the area from around the world. Some have dubbed this part of the state "The Astronomy Capital of the World."

WaveLengths: Eyes on The Universe, the science program from Arizona Public Media, focuses on some of the world-class astronomy being conducted in Southern Arizona. The second installment of season two of WaveLengths profiles five organizations doing remarkable things for astronomy science, influencing astronomers all over the planet and making a strong case for the region's nickname.





'WaveLengths: Eyes on The Universe,' the latest episode of the science program from Arizona Public Media, focuses on those who study the sky in Arizona. The sixth episode of the series premieres Sunday, November 15 at 6:30 p.m. with a primetime encore airing on Thursday, November 19 at 9:30 p.m. on PBS-HD channel 6.

WaveLengths Host Dr. Vicki Chandler takes viewers on a visit to the most powerful telescope in use today; to the home of the largest collection of optical telescopes in the world, this year celebrating its 50th anniversary; on a visit with a father and daughter who can now see the celestial wonders Galileo saw 400 years ago, thanks to a low cost, easy-to-assemble telescope; and onsite where a continual search of the sky tries to spot objects in space, before they hit the Earth.

Produced by Pam White and hosted by BIO5 Institute member Dr. Vicki Chandler. It premieres Sunday, November 15 at 6:30 p.m., with a primetime encore airing on Thursday, November 19 at 9:30 p.m.

More information on the program including where and when to watch is on the web at http://originals.azpm.org/wavelengths/


Segments of WaveLengths: Eyes on The Universe include:

Celebrating 50 years of astronomy

Kitt Peak National Observatory, founded in 1958 as a national observatory from a selection pool of more than 150 sites in mountain ranges across the United States, is part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) and home to a diverse collection of observatories. Kitt Peak also hosts the largest collection of optical telescopes in the world… all sitting atop a 6,800-foot mountain in a remote location where scientific research has been conducted for over 50 years.

The importance of dark skies

While Southern Arizona is a premiere place to view the stars, light pollution from population growth is threatening this window to the universe. Fortunately, Arizona has decades of experience in using dimmer, high quality outdoor lighting that enables night time activities for people while also protecting darker skies.

World's largest binocular telescope

High atop Southeastern Arizona's Mount Graham, at almost 11,000 feet, is the most powerful telescope in the world: the Large Binocular Telescope, or LBT. This great optical/infrared telescope uses two 8.4 meter-diameter mirrors, and is a technical marvel that will image planets outside of our solar system and peer back in time to the birth of our universe.

Galileo's vision in a box

What better way to capture children's interest in science than to give them a way to build their own telescope? Introducing the Galileoscope: not a toy, but a high quality, low-cost, easy-to-assemble telescope kit designed in Southern Arizona specifically for the International Year of Astronomy 2009. The Galileoscope's simple design allows anyone to see the same celestial wonders that Galileo first glimpsed 400 years ago… and thousands of these telescopes have already been sold worldwide in conjunction with the highly successful Year of Astronomy.

Survey of the sky

What are the chances of an asteroid hitting Earth? Mount Lemmon, Ariz., just outside of Tucson, is the home of a telescope that tracks the skies each light looking for Near Earth Objects, or NEOs. The Catalina Sky Survey is a program funded by NASA to spot and catalog objects larger than one kilometer in diameter, or about two-thirds of a mile. Last year the survey discovered a record number of 565 NEOs… what will it spot next, and when?



About Arizona Public Media

Arizona Public Media® is a member-supported non-profit media organization of The University of Arizona, this year celebrating 50 years of public broadcasting service to Southern Arizona. Arizona Public Media (AZPM) station KUAT Channel 6 offers Channel 6-1 PBS-HD; 6-2 V-me (en español); 6-3 Create; and KUAS Channel 27 offers Channel 27-1 PBS-HD; 27-2 PBS Kids; 27-3 PBS World; the UA Channel (Cox 116/Comcast 76), classical music station KUAT-FM 90.5/89.7; NPR affiliate KUAZ 1550AM/89.1 FM; and the Ahora channel (en español) on KUAZ-HD2. AZPM also produces award-winning original local programming from its digital studios on the campus of the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. More information on programming and community events can be found at www.AZpublicmedia.org