New_Mexico_State_Road_6563
New Mexico State Road 6563
Highway in New Mexico
State Road 6563 (NM 6563), also known as the Sunspot Scenic Byway,[2] is a 15.530-mile-long (24.993 km) two-lane state highway in Otero County, New Mexico, United States.
| Sunspot Scenic Byway | ||||
NM 6563 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by NMDOT | ||||
| Length | 15.530 mi[1] (24.993 km) | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end | Sacramento Peak National Solar Observatory | |||
| North end |  NM 130 near Cloudcroft | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | New Mexico | |||
| Counties | Otero | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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NM 6563 begins at the National Solar Observatory at Sunspot in the Lincoln National Forest. It then travels northward to its northern terminus at NM 130.[3]
NM 6563 is one of only three four-digit state highways in New Mexico (the others being NM 1113 and NM 5001).[1] It takes its number from the wavelength of the Hydrogen-alpha spectral line (6563 Å) used by scientists at the observatory to study the solar chromosphere and to locate solar flares on the Sun.[4]
The solar observatory added signs along the highway in 2011 with the names of the planets as part of a 1:250 million model of the distances between planets in the Solar System.[5]
The highway was designated a National Forest scenic byway on October 6, 1990.[6]
The entire route is in Otero County.
| Location | mi[1] | km | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunspot | 0.000 | 0.000 | Sacramento Peak National Solar Observatory | Southern terminus | |
| | 15.530 | 24.993 | NM 130 (Cox Canyon Highway) – Cloudcroft, Mayhill | Northern terminus | |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
- "State Routes" (PDF). New Mexico Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 29, 2005. Retrieved November 30, 2010.
- Herow, William C. (April 1997). America's Scenic Drives: Travel Guide & Atlas. Roundabout Publications. p. 259. ISBN 978-1-885464-28-6. Retrieved November 30, 2010.
- Google (November 30, 2010). "NM 6563" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved November 30, 2010.
- "Sunspot Scenic Byway" (PDF). New Mexico Department of Transportation. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
- National Solar Observatory. "Sizing Up Your Solar System". Archived from the original on September 26, 2007. Retrieved June 11, 2007.
- National Optical Astronomy Observatories Newsletter. The Observatories. 1989. Retrieved November 30, 2010.
Geographic data related to New Mexico State Road 6563 at OpenStreetMap- New Mexico Tourism Website
