Monterey Institute for Research in Astronomy
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
1) Conduct astronomical research.(2) Encourage the advancement of knowledge concerning astronomy by educating the general public.
- Income
- $801,076
- Spending
- $648,470
- Spent on programs
- 65%
- Reserves
- 57.8 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- government grants, 63%
- Employees
- 8
- Volunteers
- 10
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Strong: 93 out of 100. Higher than 71% of charities in its peer group (science, $250k to $1m).
Reserves
35 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 57.8 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 0% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 19% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 102% on the year before.
Spending floor
8 of 1564% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 0 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Good: 72 out of 100. Higher than 51% of charities in its peer group (science, $250k to $1m).
Independent board
25 of 256 of 7 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
0 of 8Reports no written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
0 of 10Did not give the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Independent check of accounts
6 of 15Its accounts were not audited or reviewed by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (3)
- $188,000 spent. Upgraded MRA's research facilities, instrumentation, and software: (1) Developed and maintained MIRA's research observatory at a remote dark-sky site. (2) Upgraded the 36-inch telescope's major instrumentation components, including spectrograph, Guidance-Acquisition Package, polarimeters, off-axis guider, etc. (3) Developed computer programs to build and test theoretical models of the spectra of early-type stars.
- $194,500 spent. Performed and published significant astronomical research. MIRA astronomers authored or co-authored four research papers published in refereed journals and nine conference presentations, most of which were published in the conference proceedings. Highlights:(1) high-precision polarimetric studies of stars and planets, published in cooperation with other observatories; (2) high - resolution infra-red observations of hot stars; (3) analysis of stellar interior structures with asteroseismolgy data from MIRA and NASA data; (4)analysis of MIRA and Hubble Space Telescope observations of cometary ejecta from the NASA Deep Impact mission.
- $4,910 spent. Public Education in Astronomy: (1) Published a quarterly newsletter. (2) Provided educational research opportunities and guidance for ten high school and college summer interns. 3) Sponsored a local astronomy club. (4) Provided maintenance and access to the Student Observatory. (5) Supported Monterey County Free Libraries telescope borrowing program. (6) Maintained an astronomical education website. (7) Conducted star parties, classroom visits and tours, and adult education classes. (8) Sponsored public lectures by eminent visiting astronomers and MIRA astronomers on topics of interest to the public.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since November 1972.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.