From Cloudcroft, a road goes south on the ridge of the Sacramento Mountains for 17 miles to reach 2 professional observatories,
the National Solar Observatory and the Apache Point Observatory. Both are at elevation 9000 feet. They are very close from each other, just a few
hundred yards, so a visit to one calls for a visit to the other.
They are both public professional observatories, so the visitor can walk around. They are built on the edge of the ridge. The view is magnificent
to the west, looking over Alamogordo and further over White Sands National Monument. The White Sands are unmistakable, a white patch glowing in the
sun and looking like snow.
The National Solar Observatory has some very peculiar telescopes, not very large but very high. It has a visitor center, and a short walk takes the
visitor around the facility and inside two buildings. The first building shows one of those long telescopes. The second building shows the incredibly
long telescope and the room where experiences analyze the light from the sun with lenses, optical paths, mirrors and special equipment of all kinds.
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