.png)
Cosmic Sidequests Ep. 1 | Hunting Asteroids at Kitt Peak ☄️
- Rosie Johnson
- Jun 30
- 3 min read
Some of the most incredible places connected to space aren't just launch pads or mission control. This is Cosmic Sidequest where we take you to down the road to space right here on Earth.
This new documentary series from Her Cosmic Orbit follows planetary scientist Dr. Allison McGraw and artist Rosie Johnson as we travel to observatories, research facilities, geological landmarks, museums, and other extraordinary places where science and creativity intersect.
Each episode explores how these places help us understand our universe, while also inspiring original works of art created on location. Allison brings the science. Rosie brings the creative perspective. Together, we hope to show that curiosity can be expressed in many different ways.
Episode 1 | Hunting Asteroids at Kitt Peak
We're kicking off the series with a special mini episode released on Asteroid Day from one of the most important mountaintops in astronomy: Kitt Peak National Observatory.
Home to one of the largest collections of optical research telescopes in the world, Kitt Peak has played a role in some of astronomy's biggest discoveries. Observations made here contributed to Vera Rubin's groundbreaking work that provided some of the strongest evidence for dark matter, and today the historic Mayall 4-Meter Telescope hosts DESI, which recently completed one of the largest 3D maps of the universe ever created.
We spent the night with the astronomers of SPACEWATCH®, a research program within the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory. Since 1980, SPACEWATCH® has pioneered digital asteroid detection and remains one of NASA's key planetary defense assets, helping discover, recover, and precisely track near-Earth objects that could one day come close to our planet.
Watching the team search for asteroids was like stepping into astronomy history. The process still relies on a modern version of the same "blink comparison" technique that helped lead to the discovery of Pluto—comparing images taken minutes apart until a tiny point of light reveals itself by moving against the seemingly fixed stars.
One of SPACEWATCH®'s most famous discoveries is asteroid Didymos, first identified at Kitt Peak in 1996. Decades later, its tiny companion, Dimorphos, became the target of NASA's DART mission—the world's first full-scale test of asteroid deflection technology. It was a remarkable reminder that discoveries made from a quiet mountaintop in Arizona can one day help protect our planet.
The visit wasn't just about science. While the astronomers tracked asteroids throughout the night, Rosie set up a camera beneath the historic SPACEWATCH® 0.9-meter Telescope to capture the Milky Way drifting overhead. The resulting time-lapse and star trail artwork became a visual interpretation of the same sky the scientists were observing—another way of telling the story of motion, time, and our place in the cosmos.
If you'd like to experience Kitt Peak for yourself, the observatory recently opened its new Visitor Center and Science Center, offering interactive exhibits, guided tours, daytime telescope experiences, and seasonal nighttime observing programs. It's one of the best places in the country to experience professional astronomy firsthand.
🎥 Watch the full mini episode now and subscribe to our YouTube channel for future Cosmic Sidequests, where we'll take you behind the scenes at some of the most fascinating science destinations on Earth.
→This mini episode is just the beginning.
Our next Cosmic Sidequest takes us to another iconic place where scientists don't just look at the universe...
They listen.📡
Comments