Mauna Kea's summit. Famous for it's international array of telescopes, it is known as one of the best (in part because of its accessibility) land based sites for viewing the stars.

Mauna Kea stands just over 13 thousand 700 feet. It is a dormant volcano that hasn't erupted in over 4 thousand years, so it's not the biggest threat by a long shot on the Big Island of Hawaii.

The summit often has a bit of snow on it, as visible on some other pictures later in the site. The mountain is almost 9 miles tall from sea floor to summit, which puts the fairly easy drive to the top in perspective.