Milky Way arch over the Ojai Valley

A window to the universe, at the foot of the Topa Topas

Rock Tree Sky Learning Center  ·  Ojai, California

A window to the universe in Upper Ojai

Rock Tree Sky Learning Center
Ojai, California

Our Story

Where dark skies meet
young minds

Powered entirely by the sun, Summit Observatory serves students and the community at the historic Summit School in the Upper Ojai Valley. Nestled at the foot of the Topa Topa Mountains near the Los Padres National Forest, it sits under some of the darkest skies in Southern California.

The fully rotating ExploraDome was donated by Martin Cohen, an astrophotographer from the Netherlands. He and Jim Bailey, Rock Tree Sky's director, spent years building and fine-tuning the optical and electronic equipment by hand. The observatory has been fully operational since spring 2026.

A dedicated K–12 observatory is a rare thing. We're proud to join our friends at Thacher School — whose physics teacher generously advised us along the way — in making Ojai a place where students can access research-grade optics, photograph galaxies millions of light-years away, and fall in love with the night sky.

Summit Observatory mosaic — exterior, interior, and astrophotography
Milky Way arching over Rose Valley near Ojai
Place-Based Learning

Rooted in the Ojai Valley

Summit Observatory embodies the place-based learning ethos at the heart of Rock Tree Sky and the Ojai Learning Ecosystem. Here, the classroom is the cosmos itself — the same sky that the Chumash watched from this valley for thousands of years.

Students don't just read about astronomy — they observe Saturn's rings with their own eyes, track Jupiter's moons night after night, and capture photons from nebulae that have traveled for millennia to reach this particular spot beneath the Topa Topas.

This is experiential education at its most profound: learning that begins with wonder and ends with connection.

Summit Observatory with Topa Topa mountains and green meadow
Star Parties & Outreach

Under the red light

Over the past year, we've hosted star parties for Rock Tree Sky families — camping weekends on the meadows surrounding the observatory. Kids and their parents gaze at Saturn's rings, the craters of the Moon, and even watched a bright comet streak across the sky just after sunset.

The interior glows with dim red light to preserve night vision. Step inside, and you enter another world — one where a child can look through a professional telescope and see, with their own eyes, what most people only ever see in photographs.

Young visitors with telescopes Child looking through eyepiece Student amazed by telescope view Family enjoying the observatory

"They couldn't get enough of looking at the rings of Saturn and the craters on the Moon."

— from a Rock Tree Sky star party weekend

The Observatory

Precision optics under an ExploraDome

Summit Observatory houses research-grade instruments on a professional equatorial mount, compensating for Earth's rotation to enable long-exposure deep-sky imaging and precise visual observation.

  • Celestron 9.25" Edge HD — Main telescope for deep-sky imaging and planetary observation
  • Sky-Watcher 80mm Esprit — Triplet apochromatic refractor for wide-field astrophotography
  • Astro-Physics AP900 Mount — Precision equatorial GoTo mount with sidereal tracking
  • Hydrogen-Alpha Solar Telescope — For daytime observation of solar prominences and flares
  • Multiple Imaging Cameras — Specialized for solar, lunar, planetary, and deep-sky work
  • Solar-Powered — The observatory runs on its own solar panel installation
  • ExploraDome — Fully rotating dome with motorized shutter
Main telescope setup with Edge HD and Esprit refractor
Part of Something Larger

The Ojai Learning Ecosystem

Summit Observatory is one node in a growing web of place-based learning initiatives in the Ojai Valley. It reflects the shared belief that children learn best when they are connected — to the land, to the community, and to the vast universe above.

Rock Tree Sky Ojai Learning Ecosystem
Support Summit Observatory

Help us keep the dome open

Without the invaluable help of enthusiastic friends and volunteers, this project would have been impossible. It is our hope that the observatory will be a source of inspiration to many young students — and their parents and local astronomy enthusiasts — for decades to come.

Purchase a Print

Interested in a fine art print of our astrophotography? Every purchase supports the observatory and its educational mission. Let us know which image caught your eye and we'll get back to you with sizes and pricing.

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Built by Community

With gratitude to the friends and volunteers who made this possible.

Rajeev Joshi  ·  Greg Prinz  ·  Jon Swift  ·  Lior Peres  ·  Matt Bialko  ·  Alex Bialko  ·  Sean McDermott  ·  Manny the Tree Guy  ·  Steve LePage  ·  Greg McComb  ·  Spencer Babcock  ·  Joe Gagnon  ·  Bob and Kathleen Zakoski

Get in Touch

For star party scheduling, school visits, equipment donations, or general inquiries — reach out to our team.

Jim Bailey  ·  Martin Cohen

jim@rocktreesky.org  ·  martincohenphotography@gmail.com

summitobservatory.org  ·  Rock Tree Sky Learning Center, Ojai, California