DARK-SKY SPAIN
Take a tour around some of the best sites Spain has to offer astronomers.
When it comes to stargazing and astronomy, there are few more tempting locations in Europe than Spain, where astro tourism is taking off in a big way. Although a big part of Spain’s attractiveness to amateur astronomers is the better chance of clear skies than in northern Europe, there’s another reason to do astronomy here that doesn’t get talked about as much as it should, and that’s latitude. Up near the border with France, locations like Albanyà and Parc Astronòmic Montsec are at around 41°N, while Malaga in the south lies below 37°N. That puts the equatorial constellations much higher in the sky than in northern Europe year round, notably Sagittarius in the summer. Not only does Sagittarius contain the Galactic core, but it’s also home to some fabulous deep-sky objects including the Lagoon Nebula (M8), Omega Nebula (M17) and the Trifid Nebula (M20), to name but a few.
Most of the places featured here are in protected areas that boast natural darkness, some of them certified as Starlight Reserves, Starlight Tourism Destinations and Starlight Hotels by the Starlight Foundation (fundacionstarlight.org).
With clearer views of some of the night sky’s most beautiful objects, plenty of rural areas free from light pollution and an ever-increasing, well-organised network of Starlight Reserves and stargazing-friendly accommodation, Spain is worth an entry on every stargazer’s bucket list.