NASA OUTER PLANETS ASSESSMENT GROUP (OPAG) MEETING
TUCSON, AZ, JUNE 3-5, 2025
MEETING VENUE
Meeting location: Lunar and Planetary Laboratory (LPL), Gerard P. Kuiper Space Sciences Building, University of Arizona, lecture hall 308 (one floor up from main/entry floor)
Address: 1629 E. University Blvd., Tucson, AZ 85712-0092
Poster reception and coffee breaks: Atrium outside of room 308 (3rd and 4th floors)
Power and break space: Rooms 309 and 312 (3rd floor), LPL library (room 409, 4th floor), open during meeting hours
Public transport: The Sun Link Streetcar connects hotels in downtown Tucson to the venue. The nearest stop to the venue (5-min walk) is stop No 17 (2nd St & Cherry) (https://www.suntran.com/routes-services/sunlink/). The streetcar is free (as are Tucson Sun Tran buses). No ticket or payment is necessary. Just walk in.
Parking: Several parking garages around campus offer visitor parking for a fee (https://parking.arizona.edu/parking/garages/visitor-parking/). We recommend the Cherry Avenue garage, 1641 E Enke Dr (enter through the south entrance from Enke Dr).
Nearby lunch options
Student Union Memorial Center (see campus map below, 9-min walk): Several options for casual lunch, general seating areas (https://union.arizona.edu)
Miss Saigon (10-min walk): A popular Vietnamese restaurant, can get busy during lunch
University Blvd. and Main Gate Square: several options, reachable in about 15 min by Sun Link streetcar (stop No 14), or about 20-min walk
LOCAL INFORMATION
Weather in Tucson
The average high temperature in early June is 100F and more extreme temperatures are possible. Please make sure that you stay well hydrated, especially if you spend time outdoors during the day. Note that you may underestimate how much water you are losing in dry heat.
Airport transfer
- Use taxi or ride share apps for Tucson International Airport.
- Groome Transportation airport shuttles connect the University of Arizona campus to the Phoenix Sky Harbor airport
- The Flix Bus connects the University of Arizona campus to the Phoenix Sky Harbor/44th Street Station a few times a day.
Some dinner options
- Agustin Kitchen, 100 South Avenue del Convento (Mercado San Agustin): New American, French-style, upscale
- BOCA by Chef Maria Mazon, 533 N 4th Avenue: Modern Mexican with a twist
- Cup Café, Hotel Congress, 311 E Congress St (downtown): Trendy American
- El Charro Café Downtown, 311 N Court Avenue (downtown): The oldest Mexican restaurant in continuous operation by the same family in the US, opened 103 years ago (reservation essential)
- Feast, 3719 E Speedway Blvd (midtown): New American, European, upscale
- Maynards, 400 N Toole Ave (downtown): New American, upscale
- The Monica, 40 E Congress St (downtown): New American, casual
- Penca, 50 E Broadway Blvd (downtown): Mexican, elevated and authentic
- Seis Kitchen, 130 South Avenida del Convento (Mercado San Agustin): Mexican, casual
- Tumerico, 2526 E 6th St (midtown, near campus): Mexican, vegan and vegetarian (only)
Some options for drinks
- The Century Room, 311 E Congress St (downtown): Live jazz and mescal lounge, cover charge (reservation needed for concerts, late night walk-up)
- The Good Oak Bar, 316 E Congress St (downtown): Local wine, beer, and spirits; cocktails
- The Moonstone, 930 E 2nd St (UA campus, the Graduate hotel): Rooftop views on the city
- Nightjar, 347 S Meyer Ave (downtown): Old-world tavern in the historic Barrio Viejo
- Prohibicion, 124 E Broadway Blvd (downtown): Speakeasy underneath the Sonora Moonshine Co, classic and tailor-made cocktails
- Revel, 416 E 9th St (4th Avenue): Wine bar
- The Owls Club, 236 S. Scott Ave.
Some sightseeing options
- 4th Avenue and Congress St (downtown): Tucson downtown thoroughfares lined up with locally owned shops, bars, coffee shops, and restaurants.
- Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, 2021 N Kinney Rd, Tucson, AZ (14 miles from campus): This complex is a 98-acre zoo, aquarium, botanical garden, natural history museum, publishing house, and art gallery.
- Biosphere 2, 32540 S Biosphere Rd, Oracle, AZ (32 miles from campus): UArizona Earth science research facility, former outer space habitation research center, tours available daily (https://biosphere2.org/)
- Barrio Viejo (downtown): An old barrio with Spanish-style adobe buildings. Consider visiting the Nightjar for a quiet drink or El Minuto for a casual Mexican dinner, after walking by the curious site of El Tiradito, the local “wishing shrine”.
- Catalina Highway and Mount Lemmon (40 miles from campus): The scenic 27-mile highway reaches the elevation of nearly 9000 ft at the top of Mount Lemmon. Visitors can take a ski lift to the summit in Ski Valley. The lift runs on Mon/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun 10.30am-4pm throughout the year.
- Museum of Contemporary Art, 265 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ (downtown)
- Old Tucson Studios, 201 Kinney Rd, Tucson, AZ (12 miles from campus): This location was used to film many old western movies, open to visitors.
- Pima Air and Space Museum, 6000 E Valencia Rd, Tucson, AZ (11 miles from campus): Tucson hosts one of the biggest airplane cemeteries in the world. Visitors can tour a section of this area to explore old passenger and military airplanes. There is also a space museum.
- Sabino and Bear Canyons, 5700 N Sabino Canyon Rd, Tucson, AZ (12 miles from campus): This area offers easily accessible hikes with different levels of difficulty as well as a shuttle service up and down the Sabino canyon. Hiking in hot weather, however, can be dangerous. Heat-related deaths of hikers do happen occasionally on more remote trails around Tucson. Please make sure to keep yourself hydrated.
- Saguaro National Park (east and west): Two parks at the opposite ends of the town. The west side features dense saguaro cactus forests while the east side rises to an elevation of 8000 ft, with 128 miles of different hiking trails. The Signal Hill picnic area on the west side includes rock art left behind by the ancient Hohokam people.
- Mission San Xavier del Bac, 1950 W San Xavier Rd, Tucson, AZ (13 miles from campus): This old Spanish mission was founded in 1692 by the Jesuits. The current building on the site was completed in 1797. It is the oldest intact European structure in Arizona.
- Tucson Museum of Art, 140 N Main Ave, Tucson, AZ (downtown)
- The University of Arizona campus: There are several high-quality, nationally recognized museums on the university campus.
