Entry No. 32 — the Minneapolis file — filed under: observatory
Onan Observatory
Operated by the Minnesota Astronomical Society, this premier stargazing complex features the Onan and Sylvia A. Casby observatories, housing over a dozen high-powered telescopes. It offers public 'Star Parties' and the annual 'Camping with the Stars' weekend away from the city's light pollution.
The story
Out in Carver County’s Baylor Regional Park, well beyond the glow of Twin Cities streetlights, sits the Minnesota Astronomical Society’s Eagle Lake Observatory complex. The core of the facility is the Onan Observatory, which held its debut public star party on April 28, 2000. It wasn't built as an exclusive research outpost for academic elites; it was raised by local amateur stargazers looking for a dark patch of sky where the Milky Way didn't get washed out by city sprawl.
Today, the Onan Observatory shares space with the Sylvia A. Casby Observatory and the HotSpot Classroom. Onan itself holds more than a dozen high-powered telescopes spread across four distinct observing platforms. Instead of staring at digital renderings on a computer monitor, you're leaning over open eyepieces and peering through massive glass—including a heavy-duty Celestron C-14 telescope pointed directly at Saturn's rings, globular clusters, and dying stars millions of light-years away.
What it's like
Show up during one of the scheduled Saturday night Star Parties and park inside Baylor Regional Park. You'll walk out to the platforms where volunteer operators slew the heavy scopes toward specific targets, explaining what you're looking at while you queue up. If you bring a light source, make sure it has a red filter—white flashlight beams ruin dark adaptation and won't make you popular on the observing decks. If clouds roll in and shut down the viewing, the crowd moves into the heated HotSpot Classroom for live multimedia astronomy talks.
The move: Drive out for an all-weather Saturday night Star Party, look through a massive Celestron C-14 telescope, and attend a multimedia astronomy presentation in their heated HotSpot Classroom.
- 📍 Norwood Young America
- 💸 $
- ⚡ Low-key
- 🌗 Outdoors
Where: 10775 County Rd 33, Norwood Young America, MN 55397
Hours: Added 2026-07-21 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Pair it with
- Northstar Forge — Trade deep-space optics for ground-level metallurgy by learning basic blacksmithing at a forge in nearby Carver.
- Eisenhower Observatory — Compare this expansive rural complex to a compact, single-dome community observatory perched on a roof in Hopkins.
- Sanctuary Float Spa — Balance a night of gazing into infinite cosmic space with an hour of sensory isolation inside a float suite.
- Pavek Museum — Follow up an evening of optical astronomy with a trip to inspect 12,000 square feet of vintage radio and television broadcast gear.
Good to know
Do I need to bring my own telescope?
No. The observatory houses over a dozen mounted telescopes on four platforms, all pointed and operated by Minnesota Astronomical Society volunteers.
What happens if the sky is completely overcast?
Star Parties run rain or shine. If bad weather or heavy cloud cover blocks the sky, volunteers shift the program inside to the climate-controlled HotSpot Classroom for presentation topics and gear tours.
Where is the observatory located within the park system?
It sits inside Baylor Regional Park near Eagle Lake in Norwood Young America, about 40 miles southwest of the Twin Cities on County Road 33.
What is the 'Camping with the Stars' event?
It's an annual weekend event at Baylor Regional Park combining campground stays with extended astronomy programming, speaker presentations, and overnight telescope access.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: mnastro.org · carvercountymn.gov
last checked: 2026-07-21