KPO – Our Mission
We’re a private organization based in Saint Cloud, Florida, dedicated to creating beautiful astronomical images of the heavens, and providing astronomy outreach to people of all ages. We are available for private observing sessions and have also held public observing sessions when the Florida weather permits. We love to share our facility with the local community, individuals, and youth groups. Located on a peninsula on Lake Tohopakaliga, in central Osceola County, Florida, the observatory enjoys very dark skies to the south.
Our History
Kissimmee Park Observatory was built literally from the ground up by our Owner and Director, David Hearn. Groundbreaking occurred on January 23rd, 2010, after which all the basic building construction efforts began. The telescope and support computers were finally installed, and the observatory opened for public access in January 2013.
We were careful to take lots of pictures and video along the way, and you can see all the Construction Images, and especially our 19 chapter film documentary “Building KPO” here on our site.
Astrophotography
The main activity at the observatory is to capture beautiful images of the heavens through our telescopes and cameras.
Visit our Astrophotography page and our Astrophotography blog to see our beautiful portraits of the cosmos.
See this post on our Blog that discusses the recent technology refresh.