Panoramas from the Summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii

Ji Hyun Chang

I am studying for a degree in communication at the University of the Nations in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. On 20-21 May 2006, my science class went on a field trip to the Mauna Loa Observatory and to the summit of Mauna Kea. I took along my camera, a Nikon D70 with an AF-S Nikkor 18-70 mm, f.3.5-4.5G ED lens.

Figure 1 is a panorama from several stitched images made from the summit of a hill near the Onizuka Center for International Astronomy on the slope of Mauna Kea. The summit of Mauna Loa can be seen over the clouds.

Mauna Kea is slightly higher than Mauna Loa. But Mauna Loa is much bigger and is the world's largest mountain.

Figure 2 is a panorama of around 300 degrees that shows the Onizuka Center for International Astronomy on the slope of Mauna Kea and the nearby housing and maintenance areas. Notice the volcanic cinder cones. Mauna Loa can be seen at the right side of the image.

Figure 3 is a panorama made from the W. M. Keck Observatory on the summit of Mauna Kea. Mauna Loa is in the background. Notice the snow.

The photos have been reduced in size and may have some distortion caused by the lens angle and by stitching together several images to provide a wider angle.

For more images from our field trip, please visit our Humanities Class web page at www.jikaoru.com.

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