Wild fires in West Texas close to McDonald Observatory and Prude Ranch

[gary]

For the past couple of weeks, wild fires have blazed through 300 square miles of
countryside in the vicinity of Fort Davis, Texas.

YouTube video of CBS story here from 12th April -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zp1H6RfBoDc

Not far from Fort Davis is the McDonald Observatory, home to several telescopes
including the 9.2m Hobby-Eberly Telescope.

Also nearby is the Prude Ranch where the Texas Star Party is held every year.

Both the McDonald Observatory and Prude Ranch have been free of fire
but in an email message today (23rd April) from Texas friend, Anne Adkins, who lives at
Limpia Crossing, only a few miles away from the Observatory, fire fighters
are finding that "because of the extraordinarily rough terrain north of the Observatory,
they are having difficulty containing the fire. Their plan is to establish another backfire
north and west of the Observatory."

When conditions allow, over the next four or five days, a Texas National Guard
engineering battalion will attempt to create safety breaks for the new backfire.

Because of the prevailing winds, it is believed that the Observatory will
not be put at risk during the backfire, but firefighting crews will be on
standby at the Observatory itself.

Sky and Telescope article by Kelly Beatty here dated 22 April 2011 -
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news/120445424.html

As Kelly reminds us, Mount Stromlo Observatory was lost in bush fires in 2003.

I had the opportunity to visit the McDonald Observatory along with Aussie friends
Andrew Murrell and John Bambury when we went to the 2007 Texas
Star Party. We have several friends in the area, including Jimi Lowrey
also at Limpia Crossing who owns a 48" OMI Dob.
See http://www.wildcard-innovations.com....es/lowrie1.jpg

This part of West Texas falls within the Chihuahua desert and is very dry at the
best of times.