Arizona Illustrated

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.