Spacewatch is enjoying the return to full-time regular operations, which resumed on December 7 after recovery from the Contreras Wildfire in June. Kitt Peak had previously been closed from March 2020 through October 2020 due to COVID, allowing only remote observing and daytime visits until June 2021.

Lightning caused the fire on June 11 in the Baboquivari Mountain range. Kitt Peak was evacuated on June 14 when high winds and dry conditions greatly accelerated the approach of the fire toward the observatory. Heroic efforts from the firefighter and flight crews and incident management teams preserved all of the science facilities. Only four structures were lost: two outbuildings, a residence, and the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO) dorm. This is remarkable considering the fire swept over the southwest ridge that includes the ARO, Very Long Baseline Array antenna, and MDM. The official incident burn size was 29,482 acres.

The fire was deemed contained on June 24 and Bureau of Indian Affairs Type 4 Incident Management Team and National Burned Area Emergency Response Team took over. The Arizona Department of Transportation and the Tohono O’odham Utility Authority began work on the road and electrical infrastructures. Helicopters were required to fly in new electrical poles sited away from the road.

Spacewatch staff were allowed to begin clean-up operations in August, while on alert for emergency evacuation in case of a monsoon. After Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) installed temporary extra generators and a Starlink dish, Spacewatch was able to restart operations on September 6, although operations were hampered by the unreliability of generators — dome shutters are not opened unless there is some form of backup power. Line power was restored to the summit on October 7. With extremely limited bandwidth for the summit, Spacewatch was restricted to onsite observing and experienced frequent blips in connectivity. The internet fiber connection was restored on December 8, bringing Spacewatch back to full strength. However, the road is still closed to traffic, with only staff or experienced tenant drivers permitted to navigate the road without an escort vehicle.