[FOTZeiss] Fw: Sark: world's first "dark-sky island"

[Glenn A. Walsh]

FYI

gaw

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--- On Mon, 1/31/11, John M. McMahon <mcmahon at LEMOYNE.EDU> wrote:

> From: John M. McMahon <mcmahon at LEMOYNE.EDU>
> Subject: General Interest: Sark, the world's first "dark-sky island"
> To: HASTRO-L at listserv.wvu.edu
> Date: Monday, January 31, 2011, 9:12 AM
> Passed on to me by a fellow
> classicist ....
> 
> Guardian 1/30/11:
> 
> "Sark is world's first 'dark sky island'"
> 
> "The Isle of Sark draws its fair share of visitors in the
> warm months
> of summer. The rock is a haven for rare wildlife, a
> landscape where
> pretty hedgerows and quaint villages are bordered by a
> breathtaking,
> craggy coastline. There is plenty to do. The events
> calendar is full
> with wildflower walks, scarecrow competitions and sheep
> races that
> last a weekend.
> 
> Today, the inhabitants of Sark, the smallest of the four
> main Channel
> Islands, celebrate a unique addition to their list of
> attractions, one
> they hope will bring more visitors in the cold, dark winter
> season.
> Lying 80 miles off the south coast of England, Sark has
> been declared
> the first 'dark sky island' in the world.
> 
> The award is in recognition of the exceptional blackness of
> the night
> sky that makes for spectacular stargazing on the island. On
> a
> cloud-free night, countless stars and hurtling meteors are
> visible
> against a backdrop of the Milky Way that reaches across the
> sky from
> one horizon to the other.
> 
> The announcement, by the International Dark Sky Association
> (IDA), a
> US-based organisation devoted to preserving the darkest and
> most
> beautiful night skies on Earth, follows more than a year of
> work with
> the island's 600-strong community to ensure as little light
> as
> possible spills upwards into the sky, where it can blot
> out
> starlight."
> 
> Lots more:
> 
> http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/jan/31/sark-first-dark-sky-island
> 
> JMM / LMC

ALSO: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110131/wl_uk_afp/britainhungaryenvironmentspace