The Manastash Ridge Observatory (MRO) is an astronomical observatory built in 1972 by the University of Washington

University of Washington

University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...

. The observatory is approximately 2600 square feet (241.5 m²) and includes a 30" Boller and Chivens

Boller and Chivens

Boller and Chivens was an American manufacturer of high-quality telescopes and spectrographs founded about 1946 by Harry B. Boller and Clyde C. Chivens . Headquartered in South Pasadena, California, the company was acquired in 1965 by Perkin-Elmer...

 cassegrain telescope. The observatory is mostly used by undergraduate students for basic observational skills. It is located in a fairly remote area, but which can be reached by back roads from either Ellensburg

Ellensburg, Washington

Ellensburg is a city in, and the county seat of, Kittitas County, Washington, United States. The population was 18,174 at the 2010 census. The population was 18,250 at 2011 Estimate from Office of Financial Management. Ellensburg is located just east of the Cascade Range on I-90 and is known as the...

 or Selah

Selah, Washington

Selah is a city in Yakima County, Washington, United States. The population was 7,147 at the 2010 census.-History:Selah was officially incorporated on April 3, 1919. The government is a Strong Mayor/Council form. The Tree Top apple processor co-operative has its headquarters and two processing...

.

MRO is also part of the Manastash Ridge Radar

Manastash Ridge Radar

The Manastash Ridge Radar is a passive radar which uses commercial FM broadcasts to study ionospheric turbulence as well as meteor trails, and aircraft...

 (MRR). MRR is a bistatic, passive radar controlled by the University of Washington's Radar Remote Sensing Laboratory (RRSL) led by Dr. John Sahr. MRR is a passive radar

Passive radar

Passive radar systems encompass a class of radar systems that detect and track objects by processing reflections from non-cooperative sources of illumination in the environment, such as commercial broadcast and communications signals...

which uses commercial FM radio broadcasts from Seattle to sense ionospheric turbulence, meteors, and airplanes. The receivers are located at the University of Washington and at MRO.

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Observatory Directors:
Current: Julie Lutz

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External links

• Manastash Ridge Observatory Clear Sky Clock Forecast of observing conditions.