Talks & Telescopes Lecture Series
“You cannot teach a man anything; you can only help him to find it within himself.” – Galileo
Compelling talks followed by picnicking and convivial stargazing through both the big telescopes.
Come enjoy an inspiring night on the mountain! The evening begins with the talk at 5:30 in our Auditorium, followed by observing through both the 60- and 100-inch telescopes — the two largest telescopes in the world available for public use. After the Talk, both the 60-inch and 100-inch telescopes will be open for viewing to lecture guests from dusk to 11:30PM. Additional stargazing around the grounds will be available from members of the Los Angeles Astronomical Society
Food will be available for purchase from a food truck, or bring your own picnic!
Couldn’t get up to the mountain for the lecture? We have a selection of our past lectures available on our Youtube Channel!
2026 Talks & Telescopes Dates
September 19, 2026
The Brightness of Stars: Henrietta Leavitt and the Transformative Nature of Attention in Art and Science
Anna Von Mertens, Visual Artist and Author
Visual artist and author Anna Von Mertens explores the life and legacy of Henrietta Leavitt, the pioneering astronomer whose study of variable stars provided the first reliable way to measure vast cosmic distances. Working among the women now known as the Harvard Computers at the Harvard College Observatory, Leavitt laid the foundation for major breakthroughs at Mount Wilson, including Harlow Shapley’s mapping of the Milky Way and Edwin Hubble’s discovery of an expanding universe. Drawing from her book Attention Is Discovery: The Life and Legacy of Astronomer Henrietta Leavitt, von Mertens shares archival materials alongside her own artwork inspired by Leavitt’s life, using art to celebrate not only how careful, trained attention leads to scientific discovery, but also how that applied attention creates a meaningful life.
October 17, 2026
The Duality of Genius and Struggle: G. E. Hale
Sam Hale, CEO and Chairman of the Board of the Mount Wilson Institute
“Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood.” This quote is an encapsulation of George Ellery Hale’s incredible life and monumental achievements. The five astronomical telescopes he built beginning in 1897 were the largest in the world for almost one hundred years. While living in Pasadena just after the turn of the 20th century, he turned what was a community school into what became the California Institute of Technology. At the same time, he was the driving inspiration for the creation of the Huntington Library. While serving on the Planning Commission, he was a major force for the creation of the city’s elegant civic center. As we’ll learn in this talk, Hale accomplished all this and more while suffering from debilitating emotional issues.
2025
May 10, 2025
The Saga of SPHEREx: NASA’s all-sky spectroscopic mapping machine
Dr. Phil Korngut, Caltech, SPHEREx Instrument Scientist
SPHEREx is NASA’s newest space telescope, launched on March 11th, 2025. Having just completed its commissioning phase, the observatory is now fully operational and surveying the sky from low Earth orbit. Over the course of its two-year baseline mission, it will deliver a first-of-its-kind dataset, containing not only imaging towards every position on the night sky, but information-rich spectroscopy in the infrared. This lecture, given from the perspective of the mission’s instrument scientist, will tell the life story of SPHEREx.
June 14, 2025
No One May Ever Have The Same Knowledge Again: Letters to Mt Wilson Observatory, 1915-1935
David Wilson, Co-Founder & Director, Museum of Jurassic Technology
Between the two world wars, Mount Wilson Observatory garnered significant public attention due to its groundbreaking astronomical work, especially following the completion of the 100-inch telescope in 1918. This interest extended beyond scientific circles, with news frequently reaching the general public through popular media. As a result, the Observatory received numerous letters from people worldwide—ranging from expressions of admiration to passionate messages from individuals claiming to have unique astronomical insights. These letters, often driven by intuition or personal observation, were eventually collected in the 1940s by solar observer Joe Hickox. A curated selection of these messages is featured in an exhibition titled No One May Ever Have the Same Knowledge Again at the Museum of Jurassic Technology.
July 12, 2025
Volcanism in the Solar System
Dr. Rosaly M.C Lopes, Deputy Director for Planetary Science, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory The planets and moons of the Solar System are incredibly diverse worlds with histories both ancient and dramatic. Etched into their surfaces is a fascinating story – of fire and ice, of order and upheaval, of great cataclysms and slow change. Volcanoes are common throughout the Solar System and volcanic eruptions are among nature’s most awesome spectacles. On Earth, we see that eruptions can range from gentle, beautiful outpourings of lava to catastrophic explosive events that can kill thousands. As we explore volcanoes on Earth and other worlds, we find a wide variety of landscapes—even ice volcanoes! We will tour different volcanoes on Earth and the Solar System, emphasizing the moons of Jupiter and Saturn.
August 9, 2025
Planet Nine from Outer Space
Dr. Mike Brown, Professor of Planetary Astronomy, California Institute of Technology
In the past 175 years, more than 30 separate astronomers have suggested the existence of a giant planet beyond Neptune. They have always been wrong. In 2016, Konstantin Batygin and I joined the list, suggesting that Planet Nine, at a distance perhaps 20 times greater than that of Neptune, is the only plausible explanation for a wide range of phenomena in the distant solar system. I’ll talk about why we think Planet Nine is real, how we’re continuing to develop our hypothesis, and what we are doing to track down this elusive planet and when we might find it. Or why we, too, might be wrong.
September 13, 2025
A Bigger Infinity
Lia Halloran, Professor of Art, Department of Art Chair, Chapman University
Join artist Lia Halloran for a lecture exploring her two-decade studio practice at the intersection of art and astronomy. Halloran will share how her research into astrophysics, historical observatories like Mt. Wilson, and archival materials from institutions such as Harvard Observatory, Caltech and the Huntington Library has informed her painting, photography, and experimental darkroom works. Through projects that center perception, time, and scale, Halloran reimagines scientific histories to amplify the often-overlooked contributions of women, queer communities, and other marginalized voices in science. Her talk will include her recent collaboration with Nobel Laureate Kip Thorne on the book ‘The Warped Side of Our Universe’ and highlight works from major exhibitions and residencies, including the recent Getty PST: Art and Science Collide initiative.
October 11, 2025
Decoding Cosmic Rainbows
Prof. Jenny Krestow, Glendale Community College And Dr. Chris Burns, Carnegie Science Observatories
In July of 2022, the first images from the James Webb Space telescope were released. Amongst the incredible images of galaxies, nebulas, and stars was the spectrum of WASP-96b, an extra-solar planet. This was by far the more scientifically interesting result, but it got relatively little exposure in the media. This just goes to show that there is a whole other dimension of astronomical data you don’t often see in press releases: spectroscopy. This method of breaking light into its composite colors and analyzing the patterns therein has lead to some of the most important discoveries in astronomy, including the detection of water in the atmosphere of WASP-96b! In this talk, we will describe how spectroscopy works, some of the fascinating discoveries made using spectra, and what the near future will bring. Hopefully by the end of the talk, you will look upon that fist JWST spectrum with as much wonder and excitement as the eye-popping images.
2024
May 4, 2024
Mount Wilson Observatory’s science advisor & favorite raconteur Tim Thompson will kick off the season with a lecture on Edwin Hubble’s work – and it all happened right here at Mount Wilson Observatory!
June 1, 2024
Compelling talks followed by picnicking and convivial stargazing through both the big telescopes. Come enjoy an inspiring night on the mountain! The evening begins with the talk at 5:30 […]
September 21, 2024
A presentation of short film treasures from the National Film Board of Canada and experimental filmmakers whose work explored the intersection of Art and Science.
October 19, 2024
Compelling talks followed by picnicking and convivial stargazing through both the big telescopes. Come enjoy an inspiring night on the mountain! The evening begins with the talk at 5:30 […]
2023
May 27, 2023
Come enjoy an inspiring night on the mountain! The evening begins with the talk at 5:30 in our Auditorium, followed by observing through both the 60- and 100-inch telescopes […]
June 24, 2023
Come enjoy an inspiring night on the mountain! The evening begins with the talk at 5:30 in our Auditorium, followed by observing through both the 60- and 100-inch telescopes […]
July 22, 2023
Come enjoy an inspiring night on the mountain! The evening begins with the talk at 5:30 in our Auditorium, followed by observing through both the 60- and 100-inch telescopes […]
August 26, 2023
Come enjoy an inspiring night on the mountain! The evening begins with the talk at 5:30 in our Auditorium, followed by observing through both the 60- and 100-inch telescopes […]
September 23, 2023
TICKETS: $40 If you receive the message REGISTRATION CLOSED, this means the event has sold out. Come enjoy an inspiring night on the mountain! The evening begins […]
October 21, 2023
SOLD OUT
BE AWARE:
It can take about an hour drive from the beginning of Angeles Crest Highway in La Canada/Flintridge to the Observatory, and once you’ve arrived there’s a ten minute walk from the parking lot to the Auditorium — or longer if you stop to take in the forest and spectacular views. You might think of arriving early enough to explore the Observatory campus with its great white domes and towers in an idyllic mountaintop setting. The Cosmic Cafe is open until 5:00 pm.
The talks begin at 5:30 pm. Be aware that the main gate closes at 6:30 pm so if you miss the talk, you’ll miss the observing too
Both the 60-inch and 100-inch historic telescopes will be available for looking though until 11:30 or so. Hence Talks and Telescopes…
After the lecture, as the sky darkens, food is available for purchase from visiting food trucks. And guests are certainly welcome to bring their own picnic dinners should they wish. Tables are available for al fresco dining as the sky darkens and stars emerge.
Los Angeles Astronomical Society members will set up their specialty telescopes around the grounds for a view of various night sky objects while you wait your turn to look through the grand telescopes in the domes. The Museum of Photon Technology, with its vintage artifacts all purposed for the gathering and analysis of the light from stars and galaxies, will be open for guests before they go up to the telescope level in the 100-inch telescope Dome. Groups are escorted in 20 at a time as this is the limit in the observing area under the telescopes.
Wear comfortable walking shoes and bring a layer or two of warm outerwear. The mountain is over a mile high, so it is cooler there than the LA basin, and it can be chilly at night, especially inside the domes. Also be aware that it takes three flights of stairs to access the telescope observation deck of the 100-year-old telescope. The telescope domes are not ADA compliant.
We have a small shuttle to and from the parking for anyone who needs it, but we really do recommend the sublime walk in the mountain air!
