Observatory
Mount Laguna Observatory (MLO) is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by San Diego State University (SDSU).[1] The telescope was operated in partnership with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) until 2000. MLO is located approximately 75 kilometers (47 mi) east of downtown San Diego, California (USA) on the eastern edge of the Cleveland National Forest in the Laguna Mountains on the SDSU Astronomy Campus near the hamlet of Mount Laguna. MLO was dedicated on June 19, 1968, seven years after SDSU's Department of Astronomy[2] became an independent academic department of SDSU's College of Sciences. The dedication took place during the 1968 summer meeting of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.[3] Currently SDSU is working with University of Kansas (KU), and UNC Chapel Hill on various projects. MLO also engages with the public through a series of scientific outreach efforts such as the summer visitors program (SVP). SVP's take place on select dates throughout the summer months (May - August, starting typically on Memorial Day weekend) and include scientific demonstrations in the museum / gift shop, an introductory lecture on astronomy, and a stargazing session using a myriad of telescopes such as the 0.52 m (20 in) Reginald Buller 21-inch Visitors' Telescope. The SVP is predominantly run by graduate students within the SDSU Astronomy Master's program.