![]() ![]() How the authority will act depends on who gets appointed to serve as its members, a process that will be completed when the legislature reconvenes next year. "I'm confident that astronomy can thrive in Mauna Kea and in Hawaii before 2033 and after," O'Meara said, "Because we're coming to a place of mutual stewardship - of everybody recognizing that it's the mauna at the center of this and not any one player." Once it has full control over the mountain, the group will be tasked with negotiating new leases for the mountain's new and existing observatories to prevent them from being decommissioned.ĭespite the uncertainty surrounding how negotiations will go, O'Meara said he thinks the creation of the new authority was a step in the right direction. Most Maui visitors journey to the 10,023-foot summit of Haleakala for sunrise, but for families seeking a more intimate experience atop the dormant volcano, Maui Astronomy Tours Sunset & Stargazing Adventure offers a slice of heaven on Earth. John O'Meara, chief scientist at the Keck Observatory on Mauna Kea, said that means the next few years will be crucial for astronomy in Hawaii. The appointment of members to the new authority will be finalized later.Īndrew Richard Hara/W. They've had control over managing the land there ever since. Dubbed Science City, the Haleakal High Altitude Observatory was erected in 1958 due to the optimal viewing conditions the shield volcano possesses, where a near-absence of light pollution, as well as the high-altitude air and height, render it one of the most superb and valuable planetariums in the world. The University of Hawaii has a lease from the State of Hawaii for all land within a 2.5-mile radius of the site of the UH 2. This granted the university the right to use the land for scientific purposes, and to sublease land on the mountain to those wanting to build observatories on its peak. More than 11,000 acres of state-owned land on the mountain were leased to the University of Hawaii in 1968. And in our cosmology, and many of our ancient chants, Mauna Kea, the mountain, is the first born out of that union." "We do, to this day, believe that Mauna Kea, and the summit area in particular, is the place where the Earth Mother, or Papa, meets the Sky Father, Wākea," she said. Noe Noe Wong-Wilson, the executive director of the Lālākea Foundation, which aims to preserve the cultural practices and traditions of native Hawaiians. The law is an important step towards ensuring the protection of Mauna Kea, a mountain native Hawaiians consider sacred, says Dr. Science NASA's James Webb telescope reveals the universe as we've never seen it before ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |