Mayall moved on from the University of California (after more than 25 years progressing from student to astronomer), to become the second director of Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO). With financial support from the National Science Foundation, several universities had formed a consortium — the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA). Its purpose was to create and run a research observatory for American astronomers. The first director was Aden B. Meinel, who chose the site near Tucson at the Kitt Peak, and oversaw the building of its first telescope, the reflector which was completed in the spring of 1960.