Astronomy Camp and its diverse staff offer an opportunity for campers to experience the universe in a new and exciting way. Teenage students gain a cosmic perspective of the earth and themselves. We examine career alternatives and reinforce school lessons through real scientific and engineering applications and investigations. With the wide range of topics incorporated into the the Astronomy Camp curriculum, its much more of a science camp than purely star gazing. Adults escape from regular routines of daily life freeing them wonder and seek answers to a lifetime of questions. Every camper is able to Reach for the Stars!

At night, campers observe a plethora of celestial objects under a dark sky using a 12-inch Meade LX-200 telescope, the 20- and 16-inch Ritchey-Chretien telescopes on Kitt Peak and the WIYN 0.9m telescope. Depending on the specific camp event, observing time will also be available at the 90-inch Bok telescope, the Arizona Radio Observatory's 12m telescope, the McMath-Pierce solar telescope, and the Submillmeter Radio Telescope on Mt. Graham. Campers become astronomers while at camp, operating research-class telescopes, keeping nighttime hours, interacting with leading scientists, interpreting their own observations, and investigating their own questions about astronomy and the universe. By the end of camp all campers are intimately connected with some of the most advanced technology available for cosmic discovery. Astronomy is about exploration of the unknown, and Astronomy Camp fosters that philosophy.

Campers have an amazing array of unique tools to help them explore their universe. All telescopes can be equipped with a selection of instruments, including 35mm cameras, digital cameras, a photometer, three CCD cameras, two CCD spectrometers, and specialized equipment for detailing imaging of the Sun. The Advanced Camps feature access to professional instruments for imaging at visual, infrared, and radio wavelengths with large format CCDs and HAWAII (1024x1024 pixel) electronic cameras. A complement of computers allows campers to analyze data using professional languages (IRAF, IDL, and others) and to simulate astronomical phenomena.

During the daytime, internationally known scientists speak on current scientific topics, including the latest NASA space missions. Students also build crystal radios, dissect cameras, explore the diverse geology and ecology though hiking, outdoor demonstrations, and travel between mountaintop observatories. Space artists illustrate how science becomes art and musicians train our ear to understand musical interpretations of scientific processes. All Camps include an in-depth tour of The University of Arizona's Mirror Laboratory, now producing not only the world's largest telescope mirrors with 8.4-meter diameters but also some of the most advanced large-format optical designes for telescopes to date.