Date: April 12, 2012
Title: International Dark Sky Week
Podcasters: Scott Kardel
Organization: The International Dark-Sky Association is a non-profit organization with the mission to preserve and protect the nighttime environment and our heritage of dark skies through environmentally responsible outdoor lighting.
Links: http://www.darksky.org/idsw
Description: This year International Dark Sky Week is April 14-20. Scott Kardel of the International Dark-Sky Association describes how you can celebrate the night sky and help defend it from the growing problem of light pollution.
Bio: Scott Kardel is the Public Affairs Director for the International Dark-Sky Association (http://www.darksky.org).
Scott has always had a love for astronomy and the universe. Growing up in the desert on the edge of Tucson, Arizona gave him a strong connection to the sky and the environment. He works for the International Dark-Sky Association helping to defend the night and was previously at Palomar Observatory. There he directed their public outreach programs and was the observatory’s representative on light pollution issues.
Sponsor: This episode of “365 days of Astronomy” is sponsored by — NO ONE. Please consider sponsoring a day or a few for 2012 so we can continue to bring you daily “infotainment”.
Transcript:
Hi, I am Scott Kardel of the International Dark-Sky Association.
International Dark Sky Week is only a few days away. It runs annually during April’s Global Astronomy Month when there is little or no moonlight in the evening sky. This year it is April 14 through 20.
So what is International Dark Sky Week and what can you do to celebrate? The goals are really quite simple. First, get outdoors at night to appreciate the beauty of the night sky.
Second, work to help preserve the night by raising awareness of how poor-quality lighting creates light pollution.
As most of you know light pollution is a growing problem. Not only does it have detrimental effects on our views of the night sky, but it also disrupts the natural environment, wastes tremendous amounts of energy, and has the potential to cause health problems.
So what can you do to fight it?
Check around your home. Make sure your outdoor-lighting fixtures are well shielded — or at least angled down — to minimize “light trespass” beyond your property. Do you have security lights that stay on all night? Consider adding a motion-detector, which can pay for itself in energy savings in just a few months. You can also perform your own outdoor lighting audit.
You’ll find lots of great suggestions in the link at the end of this podcast.
When the time is right, make the effort to talk to your friends and neighbors about light pollution. Explain that bright, glaring lights are actually counterproductive to good nighttime vision. That glare diminishes our ability to see well at night, because the pupils of our eyes constrict in response to the glare — even though everything else around you is dark.
If you have a digital camera and a tripod why not photograph the sky and enter in the 2012 International Earth and Sky Photo Contest on Dark Skies Importance. You could win some cool prizes and receive some great recognition.
If you want to help measure light pollution in your area there are two simple ways. One is to photograph some constellations and submit your pictures to the Dark Skies Photo Project. The other way is to participate in GLOBE at Night, a citizen science program that allows you to easily measure light pollution from your own back yard. GLOBE at Night is taking place right now and runs nightly through April 20th.
Those are some great ways to help fight or measure light pollution, but do not forget to go outside to enjoy the night. International Dark-Sky Week is an opportunity to dust off the old telescope in your attic and use it share in the wonder of the universe with your family, friends, and neighbors. So why not host your own star party? If that sounds too intimidating there are many star parties around that you can attend. Visit the website of the Night Sky Network and you will find a calendar of star parties and a list of astronomy clubs in your area.
Also taking place in International Dark Sky Week are public talks, showings of movies about light pollution and even an entire Dark Sky Festival taking place in Harmony, Florida where they’ve got more stars than Hollywood.
You only need to have one link to find the Dark Sky Festival, the Night Sky Network, GLOBE at Night and the other programs that will be taking place during International Dark Sky Week. That link is darksky.org/idsw.
While you are there you can also learn about the International Dark-Sky Association and how to become a member.
On behalf of the International Dark-Sky Association, I am Scott Kardel wishing you clear skies and bright stars.
End of podcast:
365 Days of Astronomy
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