Stargazers Discovering the UK’s ‘Dark Sky’ Locations

If you’re a city dweller then you’re probably familiar with light pollution. The brilliant lights of urban life can block out the light from distant stars.

So stargazers in the UK have recently come up with a work-around. They’re compiling a list of “dark sky” locations around England, Scotland, and Wales where anyone can go to enjoy a good view of the night sky.

Dan Hillier, a project leader with Dark Sky Discovery, spoke to us from the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh, Scotland just before a night sky viewing event was getting underway.

He says dark sky discovery sites are “areas identified by the public as safe, accessible viewing spots where it is dark enough to view stars in the night sky,” and places where people can enjoy first-hand experiences of astronomy in the company of friends, family and others from their local communities.

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Jeb Sharp: We’re going to talk about another kind of pollution – light pollution. The brilliant lights of urban life can block out the light from distance stars. So stargazers in the UK have recently come up with a work-around. It’s a list of “dark sky” locations where anyone can go to enjoy a good view of the night sky. Dan Hillier is with Dark Sky Discovery. We reached him at the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Dan Hillier: Scotland actually has some very remote rural communities up in the Highlands and Islands and we got a program together which we call that program “Dark Sky Scotland.” It’s really taken off and the whole idea of Dark Sky seems to captivate people.

Sharp: Why do you think that is? Why do people respond?

Hillier: Well, the phrase ‘dark skies’ I think gives an impression of an immediate connection with the night sky that’s not as complicated and may be tricky or difficult as using telescopes and binoculars. So, whilst astronomy is and can be very high tech, the idea of experiencing a dark sky is much more a media experience of the night sky.

Sharp: Do you find people are less familiar than they used to be with the night sky?

Hillier: Without a doubt. I think most people do live in relatively light-polluted areas and we rarely get a chance to see the whole sky in its entirety. So light pollution coupled with, sort of, tall buildings and other structures means that we’re just not familiar with stuff that’s up there every night of the year really and we’ve lost that connection.

Sharp: You have people coming to the Observatory tonight. What’s up there tonight? What will they see?

Hillier: The audience will be having a look at our telescope. We’ve got a dome structure that can rotate. You might even hear a rumbling in the background in a moment. I think the main object people will recognize (and this is true for people anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere, essentially) will be the bright object in the southeastern sky. A bright star-like object will be Jupiter; it’s actually a planet – the largest in the solar system. It’s fantastic just to see it and recognize it with the naked eye. If you get the chance to look at it through a small telescope or even a pair of binoculars, you may be able to just make out some three or four small dots lined up either side of the planet. Those are the planet’s moons and those are the moons that Galileo saw when he was the first person to look at Jupiter with a telescope and made some fantastic first sketches of those moons. If you are lucky enough to look at that Jupiter over a series of two or three nights, what you will see is that they change positions because these moons are orbiting Jupiter and the speed at which they do that means that, from night to night, they are in different positions. It is quite fantastic to see another system out there in space.

Sharp: Do you remember the first time you saw Jupiter and the moons?

Hillier: Yes, I do. I was up in the Highlands; it was a residential event. Someone had brought a telescope along for that event. There is something curious that when you see something that is another world and another system such as Jupiter and its moons it makes you feel connected with the Universe, but also it gives you a new perception of Earth and your own place on Earth. So, it’s sort of looking outwards but looking inwards at the same time.

Sharp: Dan Hillier is project leader of the group called Dark Sky Discovery. It’s organizing a list of good places to go for the best view of the night sky. Thank you; have a lovely evening with your folks.

Hillier: Okay. Thanks very much.

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