Putman Mountain Observatory
Satellite imagery: Esri, Maxar, Earthstar Geographics
In the Texas Hill Country, Putman Mountain Observatory runs a robotic telescope through the night searching for asteroids and exoplanets while sharing what it finds with the public.
About Putman Mountain Observatory
Putman Mountain Observatory is an amateur astronomy research facility in Texas, United States, built around education and outreach as much as observation. The observatory operates across two observing locations on Putman Mountain.
Telescopes & research
Its main instrument is a 16-inch Ritchey-Chretien telescope with a Zerodur primary mirror, housed in a robotic dome that can operate with minimal supervision. The observatory is used for asteroid searches, exoplanet searches and photometry, and it runs its own weather station with updates every fifteen minutes to help plan observing runs.
Location & getting there
The observatory sits on Putman Mountain in the Texas Hill Country in the United States, a rural setting that supports its research-grade robotic telescope work.
Visiting Putman Mountain Observatory
Putman Mountain Observatory runs public education and outreach programmes; check its official website for current event listings and visiting details before planning a trip.
See your named star from here
A robotic telescope built for asteroid and exoplanet searches is more than capable of finding a single named star once it has the right coordinates. If you bring your Star Register certificate's right ascension and declination to an outreach event here, staff familiar with the equipment can help point it your way. Take a look at our naming packages or the catalogue of stars already named.
Opening hours and public-visit programs vary by season. Check Google Maps for current times before you travel.