It’s not often that one has a chance to visit a place so serene and spellbindingly beautiful that your entire concepts of being and existence are irrevocably altered. This blog author experienced that last weekend during a tour of New Mexico Tech’s Magdalena Ridge Observatory situated at 10,600 feet up in the mountains west of Socorro, New Mexico.
For it wasn’t just the stunning celestial images drawn to Earth from outer space by the fast-tracking 2.4 meter optical telescope, but it was the ethereal images of sky and earth that accompanied them while touring the astronomical and atmospheric research stations. Together they shaped a portrait of place and time that was incredibly moving and rewarding.
While surmounting South Baldy, distant cloud bursts fell upon faintly-hued ridge tops while glorious rays of evening sun intertwined with clouds of white and gray amidst a blue palette. Against the waning daylight, the optical observatory resembled a lone sentinel keeping watch over its mountaintop fortress. The scene was filled with such awe-struck beauty that it is nearly indescribable.
To observe first hand the images of the Ring Nebula and a spiral galaxy while being situated atop such a lovely earthbound realm was simply dreamlike. There’s a reason New Mexico is called “The Land of Enchantment,” and Magdalena Ridge is certainly a perfect testament to that nickname.
Being and existence are both tough concepts to define, let alone describe. Suffice it to say that while one might not be able to pinpoint them, one can certainly affix situations and circumstances where they have become forever altered…where one is no longer the same after the experience. This may happen as the result of an unfortunate or traumatic episode. It may occur during a profound time of joy or accomplishment. Or, it may arise from an ethereal or transcendental event, such as this visit to Magdalena Ridge. May such a positive and magical experience be shared with you, as well.
Peace!
problogic
Panethos 