One Observatory That Escaped the 2020 Curse

Ron Schmit · Post by **Ron Schmit** » Tue Dec 29, 2020 3:35 pm

In the ravages of the 2020 fire season out west, there was one bright spot. As the SCU Lightning Complex Fire swept across the area east of San Francisco Bay and California Central Valley region, it came dangerously close to the main domes of the Lick Observatory around August 19–20.

Catching up on some reading over the holiday break, and found some pictures that make me cringe. SOOOO close!
.
A harrowing story from August, interviewing staff that fought the flames: https://youtu.be/xPUZOrb8gsE

Here's a time lapse from a web cam showing the approach of the flames: https://youtu.be/56uA2oVKdHE
.

: fire-900x563.png (303.45 KiB) Viewed 573 times

.
Picture showing the approaching smoke.

: apf-8-20-410.jpg (51.15 KiB) Viewed 573 times

.
A photo from the end of August, taken from an adjacent peak, showing JUST HOW CLOSE it got.

: EgjVF5XUYAEA-IQ.jpg (93.21 KiB) Viewed 573 times