UH Hilo to Decommission Mauna Kea’s Hoku Keʻa Telescope

Hoku Keʻa, the UH Hilo Educational Telescope on Mauna Kea. UH Hilo photo.

By Maui Now Staff

The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo will begin the decommissioning process for the Hoku Keʻa, the UH Hilo Educational Telescope on Mauna Kea, early next year.

UH Hilo will follow the process outlined in the Office of Mauna Kea Management’s Comprehensive Management Plan.

The process is expected to be completed in 2018 after the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory’s scheduled decommissioning. The area will be restored to its natural state, and no new observatory will be built on the Hoku Keʻa site.

The Caltech Observatory announced in May that it is ending operations and will also begin the decommissioning process in 2016. As with the UH Hilo telescope, no new observatory will be built on the site.