Roque de los Muchachos: One of the Best Skies on Earth
Canary Islands, Spain
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Roque de los Muchachos
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400
XP
+100 Spain
= 500 total
1 day
Roque de los Muchachos: One of the Best Skies on Earth
400 + 100 XP
The Roque de los Muchachos is the top of La Palma, and the observatory on it exists because of a very specific combination: great height, and smooth laminar Atlantic air arriving over open ocean with no turbulence in it, which gives stable, clean light. That is a rarer condition than altitude alone and it is why some of the largest telescopes in the northern hemisphere are up here. The island protects it with a sky law limiting lighting, so what you see with your own eyes from the summit road is also extraordinary.
Required Activities
1
of 5
Drive or ride up to the summit and look down on the cloud sea from above it
2
of 5
Work out why here and not simply anywhere high: laminar Atlantic air over open ocean with no turbulence, which is what gives stable light
3
of 5
Book a guided visit into the observatory and see the scale of the instruments
4
of 5
Stay after dark somewhere on the ridge and find out what a sky with a lighting law over it looks like
5
of 5
Walk a stretch of the crater rim path along the top of the Caldera de Taburiente
Drive or ride up to the summit and look down on the cloud sea from above it
Work out why here and not simply anywhere high: laminar Atlantic air over open ocean with no turbulence, which is what gives stable light
Book a guided visit into the observatory and see the scale of the instruments
Stay after dark somewhere on the ridge and find out what a sky with a lighting law over it looks like
Walk a stretch of the crater rim path along the top of the Caldera de Taburiente
Before you go
The long nights from October to March give the darkest skies.
Over 2,400m — it is cold, thin and can freeze at any time of year. The summit road closes in snow and cloud, and driving it at night needs care.
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About Canary Islands
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Challenge Location
XP Breakdown
Challenge XP
400 XP
Spain country bonus
+100 XP
Potential total
500 XP
Country bonus earned on completion of your first challenge in Spain.
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