BigBend2024

Area Attractions Since then the town has enjoyed mod est growth, with additions to the Gage and other attractive visitor accommoda tions. Long-time residents and newcom ers alike have refurbished older buildings and generally beautified the small main street of Marathon. A growing artists’ community has established a variety of studios and galleries. Local eateries pro vide good food with flavors of West Texas, Mexico and other nearby regions. The shops along Highway 90, spruced up with sand–colored sidewalks and lime stone flower planters, offer regional gifts, books, arts and crafts from all over the Southwest and Mexico, ranching memo rabilia, clothing and souvenirs. McDONALD OBSERVATORY McDonald Observatory, a research unit of The University of Texas at Austin, is one of the world’s leading centers for astronomi cal research, teaching, and public educa tion and outreach. Almost 150,000 people a year visit the observatory facilities locat ed atop Mount Locke and Mount Fowlkes in the Davis Mountains of West Texas. The Observatory is home to the Hobby Eberly Telescope (HET), one of the world’s largest optical telescopes. It’s optimized for spectroscopy, the decoding of light from stars and galaxies to study their properties.

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McDonald Observatory operates a multi faceted international public outreach pro gram. At the Observatory Visitors Center, outreach events include the very popular star parties, public tours, K-12 teacher and student activities, and more. For more information, visit: http://McDonaldObservatory.org

MUSEUM OF THE BIG BEND In 1926, the West Texas Historical and Scientific Society was founded for the purpose of creating a museum for the Big Bend region. With funding from the Texas Centennial Commission and the WPA, the Museum was constructed in 1937. In 2006, the structure was completely renovated and new exhibits designed and

Community Information

installed. The new Museum has been recognized with awards from the Texas Historical Commission, Preservation Texas and Humanities Texas. The museum is located on the Sul Ross State University Campus. Admission is free. For more information call 432-837-8730.