Travel Details

Biosphere 2 is about an hour north of Tucson, Arizona.

What to bring: An open mind, your expertise and curiosity, but also: sunscreen, sunglasses, water bottle, hat for sun protection, and some clothing appropriate for the chilly nights. The Biosphere 2 rooms are similar to the rooms you might find at an observatory, so do not have everything you might expect in a hotel. They do have shampoo, conditioner, bedding, and towels. Each casita has an iron and ironing board. Extra shampoo and conditioner is available in the large conference room or near the beverage display in the cafe. There is a common washer/dryer area in casita 400, but they do not supply laundry detergent. They do not have soap (!) or hair dryers.

Hotels: Biosphere 2 has on site housing available for check-in on Monday March 27 and check-out Friday March 31. Biosphere 2 can accommodate most of our anticipated attendance, and for the rest we arranged a nearby hotel block. Shuttles will provide transportation to Biosphere 2 each morning and evening from the Fairfield Inn. If you need information about the hotel or Biosphere 2 please contact the organizers.

Rental Cars: If you want to rent a car for your trip, this is high season for Tucson, so you should do so as soon as you can. Also, you will have to ask the organizers for instructions for entering through the Biosphere 2 gates.

Arrival: You should plan to arrive on Monday, March 27, 2023. Check-in to the rooms at Biosphere 2 is at 3pm. For those staying at Biosphere 2, there will be a light dinner (e.g. sandwiches) available on Monday evening. However, there is not really any food option at Biosphere 2 before that so we recommend you have or bring lunch if you are arriving earlier than check-in.

Departure: The meeting ends on Friday, March 31, 2023. To stay the whole meeting, you will need to schedule your departure Friday night or on Saturday. Unfortunately because of Biosphere 2's constraints, those staying there will have to check out on Friday (so if you have to leave Saturday, you need to book Friday night either in one of the hotel blocks or at a hotel nearer the airport).

Airport: For those flying from out of town, the nearest airport is Tucson International Airport (TUS). It is not always possible to get a ride service like Uber to pick up at Biosphere 2 to get to the airport! We are providing shuttles from and back to the airport on Monday and Friday. If you need to use the shuttle service, but have not heard from us about or filled out the travel form, contact the organizers!

If you have questions about travel logistics, please email galaxy.formation.meeting@gmail.com and cduncanf@arizona.edu.