Golden Hour at Maunakea

As the Sun sets over Maunakea, one of the volcanoes constituting the island of Hawai‘i, a soft golden glow washes over the telescopes that call the mountain home. For many, golden hour signifies the closing of a day, the time to begin preparing for sleep. But for staff at Gemini North (left), one half of the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF NOIRLab which is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, golden hour signifies the beginning of the work day. As soon as the Sun dips below the horizon, the telescope domes open and the telescope comes to life. Also pictured here is the Canada-France-Hawai‘i Telescope (right) and, in the distance from left to right, the Subaru Telescope, W. M. Keck Observatory, and NASA Infrared Telescope Facility. All the telescopes on Maunakea are part of the Maunakea Observatories. 

This photo was taken as part of the NOIRLab 2022 Photo Expedition to all the NOIRLab sites. Petr Horálek, the photographer, is a NOIRLab Audiovisual Ambassador.