Spooky Sunset: Halloween hues light up Kitt Peak Observatory

Halloween fever isn’t gone, even though many continents in the world have now seen the sunrise of November 1, 2025.

If we had to pick one stunning snap to summarize the Halloween buzz, it would be the one captured by NIRLab at Kitt Peak Observatory located in Arizona: the golden-orange horizon.

The Observatory is known for having the largest collection of telescopes (24 optical and 2 radio telescopes), making it one of the world’s most important astronomical sites on Earth, located at a height of 6,880 ft above sea level in Arizona’s Sonoran Desert, one of the darkest, clearest sites worldwide—perfect for deep-space viewing.

The photo captured there has now become 2025’s viral Halloween frame, depicting an orange sunset photo taken on October 31, 2025, that lit up “cosmic pumpkin” vibes on platforms like X and Instagram.

A sky ablaze with orange at Kitt Peak National Observatory is about more than just spooky associations.

It spotlights two necessary things that are required for pristine astronomy: the dry air and lack of light pollution at the site.

It was founded in 1964, the Kitt Peak was selected by the National Science Foundation to install a national observatory capable of providing clear, dark-skied views of the cosmos.

Over the course of time, the observatories at Kitt Peak site helped map dark matter, chart distance galaxies, and prepare the next generation of astronomers.