Alamogordo
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With about 35,000 citizens, Alamogordo is a quiet little city. It is an ideal
base for exploring many interesting places in the
surroundings. You will find several inexpensive motels, campgrounds
and RV parks, and rental car stations.
Links
Valley of Fires
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The Valley of Fires Recreation area is about a two to three hour
drive north of the White Sands National Monument. The dark black
lava crust of this old lava flow forms a magnificient contrast to
the brilliant white sand dunes of White Sands. In the fertile lava
ground, a variety of different plants enrich the sight with green,
colorful and odd shaped plants. The laval flow is between 1500
and 2000 years old. It is some 44 miles long with a width of 4 to
6 miles.
The recreation area offers a nature walk through the lava field, which gives you some information about geology and vegetation along the trail.
Getting there
From White Sands or Alamogordo, take U.S. Route 70 north to Tularosa. From there, take U.S. Route 54 to Carrizozo and follow the signs.Links
Sunspot Solar Observatory
Among the 100 billion stars in our Milkiway galaxy, our sun, which is nothing but a star, is the closest to us. Still, it is much easier to observe all the other stars at night, which can already easily be done with binoculars. However, observing the sun is)
quite dangerous, and nobody should ever attempt to directly look
into the sun with or without binoculars, since it would cause
immediate eye damage. Having a professional sun observatory just
around the corner makes it much easier. When taking the necessary
precautions, such as using appropriate sun filters, the sun
unveils that it is much more than just a very bright yellow ball
in the sky.
With a properly equipped telescope, we can observer large eruptions
of gas material on the surface of the sun. Sunspots, which are
darker areas on the sun's surface, can be observed with varying
intensity. These spots are areas with a lower temerature compared
to the regular surface temperature of approximately 5510 degrees
celsius. They are caused by magnetic field lines entering or exiting
the sun's surface and preventing energy from within the sun to be
transported to the surface.
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The Sunspot Observatory lies on the mountains south-east of
Alamogordo. It has a visitor center with lots of information
on the sun itself. You can take a walk on the observatory's
premises and have a close look at the teleskopes and other
observing equipment.
Getting there
From Alamogordo, take U.S. Route 82 east into the mountains. Once you reach Cloudcroft, take U.S. Route 130 east for a couple of miles, before taking U.S. Route 6563 all the way to the end. Finally, you will have reached the observatory after a long and curvy drive.Links
Carlsbad Caverns
Carlsbad caverns is a huge cave system at the border to Texas. It's a nice next destination when you continue your travel from Alamogordo to the east.Getting there
Carlsbad Caverns is a several hour drive away from Alamogordo, which is too far for a day trip. From Alamogordo, take U.S. Route 82 to Artesia. From there, take U.S. Route 285 down to Carlsbad and U.S. Route 62/180 to Whites City. From there, follow the signs to the national park.Links
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