This week on Arizona Illustrated…the 24th U.S. Poet Laurate, Ada Limón, visits Saguaro National Park in Tucson; a tour of the living history on display at the Fort Lowell Encampment; instruments developed at the University of Arizona are headed to the icy moons of Jupiter on the Europa Clipper and the brittlebush is a springtime favorite in the Sonoran Desert.
Poetry in Parks – Ada Limón Visits Tucson
In December of 2024 the 24th U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón visited Tucson, Arizona to dedicate a picnic table as part of her Poetry in Parks initiative. The table, located in Saguaro National Park East, features a poem by Tohono O’odham poet and University of Arizona Professor Ofelia Zepeda.
Tucson Tour: Fort Lowell Encampment
Fort Lowell, established in 1866 near Tucson, played a key role in the region’s military and cultural history. Originally built to protect settlers, it was moved in 1873 for better access to water. The fort housed soldiers and their families, who endured tough frontier life while forming a close-knit community.
During the Indian Wars, Fort Lowell was a military hub, but it also hosted social events and cultural exchanges with Native American tribes. It was abandoned in 1891 as the region became more settled. Today, the Fort Lowell Museum and historical park preserve its legacy, showcasing Tucson’s military past, diverse heritage, and cultural significance.
Europa Clipper
Europa Clipper is a NASA mission to study Jupiter’s moon Europa, an ocean world that might harbor alien life beneath its icy crust. The University of Arizona’s Lunar & Planetary Lab has direct involvement with two of the spacecraft’s key instruments, which collectively will be able to map above and below the moon’s iceberg-like exterior to examine whether life could survive in the fathoms below.
Desert Plants – Brittlebush
Thousands of different flowers, shrubs and trees can be grown in the Sonoran Desert, and brittlebush (Encelia farinose) is a fantastic option for those seeking drought-tolerant and dependable flowering specimens.
AZPM is a service of the University of Arizona and our broadcast stations are licensed to the Arizona Board of Regents who hold the trademarks for Arizona Public Media and AZPM. We respectfully acknowledge the University of Arizona is on the land and territories of Indigenous peoples.
By submitting your comments, you hereby give AZPM the right to post your comments and potentially use them in any other form of media operated by this institution.