Wildfire near McDonald Observatory

We've just heard that there is a grass fire that has consumed 20,000 acres about 15 miles away from McDonald Observatory. I haven't heard if the observatory is threatened or not, but I suspect I would hear if they were worried.

However, there is a lot of very dry grass and tinder around the area, because it rained a lot last year, but has been very dry ever since. The telescopes worked last night, so the smoke can't be too bad. (Smoke is very bad for telescope mirrors, because it contains corrosive chemicals. So we close up tight when smoke is around.)

I'll write more if I hear more. In the meantime, here is a news story about the fires.