The dark sky place of the year
As demand for astro-tourism experiences grows around the world, an association dedicated to preserving clear views of the night sky has named this year’s best spot for a nocturnal adventure.
THE Grand Canyon, the iconic travel destination in the United States, has recently been awarded the International Dark Sky Place of the Year, after making strides to protect the night from the light.
The enormous canyon carved out by the water of the Colorado River over millions of years is celebrating its first century this year as a designated US national park.
A Dark Sky Place is a designated space for the conservation and promotion of night sky, encouraging communities and parks to better protect sites from unnatural and artificial lights. There are more than 120 certified international dark sky places in the world.
Every year, more than six million people visit the Grand Canyon, mostly in air-conditioned buses, or even a rented helicopter, while some adventure lovers take a twoday hike down into the canyon.
The nearly 500ha majestic landmark was officially certified as an International Dark Sky Park in June this year. The park replaced nearly 3,500 fixtures and lights, the largest retrofit of any dark sky park, to comply with the needs to be one.
“Visitors have the opportunity to experience state-of-the-art, dark sky friendly lighting, observe nearly pristine night skies, and experience first-hand the importance of naturally dark places,” the International Dark-Sky Association said.
The association, formed in 2001, has been promoting organisations, people, communities, and destinations working to protect dark skies.
As the Earth becomes more populous and more people live in expanding cities, stargazing has become a global industry in recent years.
Research by the Light Pollution Science and Technology Institute says 80% of the Earth’s land area suffers from light pollution.
Demand for astro-tourism experiences has grown worldwide, with adventurers seeking better access to an unpolluted view of the panoramas and the stars, while the numbers hunting auroras and eclipses is also on the rise.
The famous Lonely Planets guidebook has recognised visiting dark sky places as one of the top ten travel trends this year.
Apart from Grand Canyon, here are some of the other Dark Sky Places:
Designated as Dark Sky Reserve in 2014, Sternenpark Westhavelland in Brandenburg, Germany is the closest such reserve to a major populated city (Berlin).
In February, Fulda in Hesse become the first German city to receive the International Dark Sky Community in Germany, one of the very few places to be designated as such outside of the US.
New Zealand’s South Island has Aoraki/Mt Cook Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve, the largest dark sky reserve in the world and the only one of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. Namibia’s Nature Reserve is one of the naturally darkest but accessible places on Earth. It is Africa’s largest private nature reserve, located on the eastern edge of the Namib Desert. It has high night sky clarity thanks to low humidity.
Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park in Okinawa Prefecture became the first accredited dark-sky place in Japan in 2018. The 406sq km park is in the remote sub-tropical Yaeyama Islands off Japan’s southern coast.