UCO/Lick Observatory

E. Margaret Burbidge

Observational Astronomy Workshop

August 26 - August 28, 2021

Lick Observatory, Mt Hamilton, CA

&

October 9 - October 11, 2020

Remotely from Lick Observatory, Mt Hamilton, CA

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Reimbursements for UC-Registered Participants (Updated: 2021-08-28)

UC-registered participants must claim post travel reimbursements by submitting the appropriately completed forms and documents to University of Califonia Observatories' Business Office (located on UCSC campus) after returning to your campus following the workshop.

At least one form must be submitted:

IMPORTANT: The versions of these forms have been specifically prepared for the workshop. Therefore, these specific forms must be used.

In the first instance completed forms (accompanied by copies of appropriate receipts) should be submitted to:

Camille Martinez
(2020 E. Margaret Burbidge Workshop)
UCO/Lick Observatory
Administration
University of California
1156 High Street
Santa Cruz
CA 95064

Electronic mail: camille@ucolick.org
Depending upon circumstances, attendees may be requested to complete and submit a further form:
  • Payee Setup 204 Form.

Key points are the following:

  • If you are not a US citizen, you will need to submit a copy of your I-94 form and the signature page of your passport with the forms.
  • Financial support is for attendees to travel within California. To keep expenses down, ride-sharing among attendees is encoutaged. Travel support will not be available for those wishing to travel to Mount Hamilton from outside California.
  • Original receipts are required for airfare (regular/economy/coach). You must fly on a US carrier.
  • Original receipts are required for rental cars. Insurance for rental cars is not reimbursable. Participants from the same UC campus are encouraged to car-pool.
  • For the most part, participants in the Workshop are not expected to have any costs for meals and incidentals.
  • When a personal vehicle is used in lieu of flying, reimbursement is limited to the lesser of the equivalent airfare, plus transportation to and from the airport or the actual mileage cost (at 56.6 cents/mile [2013 rate, may have changed up or down]). Reimbursement is limited to the owner of the vehicle and does not increase depending on the number of passengers.
  • An alternative to using a personal vehicle is renting a vehicle. Rental costs will be reimbursed (with the exception of insurance) and gasoline purchases will be reimbursed.

Transportation to Mount Hamilton

It is the responsibility of participants to organize transportation to Mount Hamilton. Most often, this is arranged between participants via a combination of rental or personal vehicles and/or car-pooling.

Note that lunch is NOT PROVIDED on the first day of the workshop. Participants are recommended to make arrangements for lunch in an urban center while en route to (and prior to ascending) Mount Hamilton.

Flying

Access airports serving the San Francisco Bay area include:
  • San Jose International airport: SJC
  • San Francisco International airport: SFO
  • Oakland International airport: OAK
San Jose Internationa airport (SJC) is the closest airport to Mount Hamilton and is served by several airlines. Tickets can be found either by dealing with the airlines directly via their website(s), or by searching third-party consolidation websites. However, be aware that some "no-frills" or budget airlines (e.g. Southwest) often do not appear in search results on third-party websites, and should therefore be consulted directly.

International arrivals: It is recommended to allow a minimum of 2 hours between your international flight arrival time and finally exiting the airport terminal to account for processing (immigration, baggage reclaim, customs, etc). Combined with additional hours of ground transportation between airport and Mount Hamilton (see below), international arrivals are advised to consider arriving in California at least the day before the workshop commences, and departing either late in the afternoon or evening of the final day of the workshop, or departing the following day.

No public transit ground transportation options are available between the above airports and Mount Hamilton (and vice-versa). This limits practicable transportation options to vehicle rental, airport shuttles and/or taxis.

Between SFO or OAK and Mount Hamilton: At minimum, under the best traffic conditions, at least 2.5 hours travel time from San Francisco International airport (SFO) or Oakland International airport (OAK) to Mount Hamilton should be allowed. Traffic can easily add 1 hour or more to this estimate. If using a shared-ride airport shuttle service, it is highly likely that Mount Hamilton shall be the final stopping point: all other passengers shall be taken to their destination(s) first and this can easily add multiple additional hours to the journey time.

Between SJC and Mount Hamilton: At minimum, under the best traffic conditions, at least 1.5 hours travel time from San Francisco International airport (SFO) to Mount Hamilton should be allowed. Traffic can easily add 1 hour or more to this estimate. If using a shared-ride airport shuttle service, it is highly likely that Mount Hamilton shall be the final stopping point: all other passengers shall be taken to their destination(s) first and this can easily add multiple additional hours to the journey time.

Advice about ridesharing (Uber, Lyft & Supershuttle): Experience shows that Uber and Lyft only deliver passengers to Mount Hamilton --- these services do not pick up from Mount Hamilton. Additionally, due to unreliable mobile phone network reception on Mount Hamilton, Uber and Lyft drivers have difficulty updating/completing on-line trip transactions and details.

Therefore, participants who are flying to and from San Francisco Bay Area airports are advised to consider SuperShuttle (or similar service) for transfering between these airports and Mount Hamilton (and vice-versa).

Driving

A downloadable tri-fold Lick Observatory information leaflet, including driving directions and a map of UCO/Lick installations at the summit of Mount Hamilton are available from Resources.

There are no gasoline or automotive services on Mount Hamilton. It is recommended that vehicles are re-filled with fuel before departing urban San Jose/Livermore/Patterson for the ascent to the summit of Mount Hamilton.

Re-fuelling also prepares for the (low probability) contingency of evacuation of the observatory via routes to Patterson and/or Livermore.

Mobile phone network reception on Mount Hamilton is unreliable. All necessary communications should be completed before departing an urban center.

The recommended approach to Mount Hamilton from the West (San Jose) is via Alum Rock Road and Mount Hamilton Road (California State Route 130). The alternative approach to Mount Hamilton Road (via Quimby Road) is not recommended and is unsuitable for large vehicles. GPS and/or Satellite navigation systems provide unreliable journey time estimates for the ascent of Mount Hamilton Road. A minimum time of 1 hour should be allowed for the ascent from the junction of Alum Rock Road and Mount Hamilton Road.

From the East, Mount Hamilton can be approached from Livermore or from Patterson (Interstate 5). Re-fuel before departing Livermore or Patterson. From Patterson, turn North-West onto Puerto del Canyon Rd (California Route 130). From Livermore, take Mines Road, heading South. At The Junction Bar & Grill, head South on San Antonio Valley Rd (California Route 130). Allow 2 hours from Patterson. The Junction Bar & Grill, is a convenient rest/refreshment stop. It requires 1 hour to drive the remaing 19 ascending miles to the Observatory from The Junction Bar and Grill. In heavy winds or rain approaching from the East may be more susceptible to delays due to fallen rocks, trees or flash flooding in the road.

Anticipate hazards due to fauna and flora while driving the serpentine rural roads of Mount Hamilton: Squirrels, deer, wild boar, bobcats, foxes, etc. often bolt into the roadway, and could be in the middle of the road around the next bend. It is not uncommon to encounter fallen rocks and/or trees in or blocking the road after rain or high winds. Allowing additional time (circa 30 minutes) is recommended to accommodate contingencies such as slow moving vehicles, road traffic accidents, construction, detours for public festivals, livestock in the road, etc).

At Lick Observatory

  • The maximum permissable speed along Mount Hamilton Road in the vicinity of the Observatory and within the Observatory precincts varies between 15 mph and 25 mph.
  • Pedestrians are present at all times of day and night.
  • Parking in the dormitory precincts is limited.
  • Parking permits and access permissions shall be issued to participants during check-in.
  • Parking permits must be placed on top of the vehicle's dashboard.
  • Ensure that vehicles are parked such that other vehicles are not prevented from departing. Do not obstruct access to garages at any time. Please consider car-pooling with other participants.
  • Please be considerate of your neighbours in the small. community of Mount Hamilton. Depending on shift patterns, residents sleep both during the day and night. Staff have families, including small children. Please minimize any disturbance.