Certainly, you're close-when measured from its base on the ocean floor, Mauna Kea reaches an amazing 13,796 feet! Set out into the Pacific, with clear skies and no light pollution, Mauna Kea is the best place on earth, they say, to stargaze (see Musts for Outdoor Fun). No wonder that 11 nations have set up infrared telescopes here, to peer into space.