IDA-certified public observatory with a 24.5-inch reflector.
Updated: · Tonight: Friday, August 14, 2026
Goldendale Observatory is home to one of the largest telescopes in the U.S. built specifically for public education, sitting in the hills above the Columbia River in south-central Washington. It's a rare case of a state park built around an observatory rather than the other way around.
Planets, the moon, and deep-sky objects through the observatory's large research-grade telescope during scheduled night programs.
Programs run Thursday–Sunday evenings in spring/summer and Friday–Sunday in fall/winter — reservations are required and schedules shift seasonally, so check the current calendar before visiting.
Tonight's verdict above is a build-time snapshot. For the full hourly view — cloud cover, transparency, seeing, smoke, humidity, moon altitude and a Bortle-aware tonight score by observing mode (visual, deep-sky, planetary, astrophoto) — open the live forecast:
Live 48-hour forecast for Goldendale Observatory → Full editorial guide
Tonight's verdict is Poor (Medium confidence). No sustained clear window; brief gaps possible (min cloud 0%).
Programs run Thursday–Sunday evenings in spring/summer and Friday–Sunday in fall/winter — reservations are required and schedules shift seasonally, so check the current calendar before visiting.
In the town of Goldendale, Washington, about 1.5 hours east of Portland, Oregon via Highway 14 and Highway 97.
Planets, the moon, and deep-sky objects through the observatory's large research-grade telescope during scheduled night programs.
Goldendale Observatory sits at Bortle class 3 on the 1–9 dark-sky scale, where 1 is a pristine wilderness sky and 9 is an inner-city sky.