Friday, February 11, 2011

The Endangered Future of Stargazing, a Civic Soapbox essay by Matthew Poteat

Nearly twenty-years ago I had the privilege of working a summer job in Yellowstone National Park. It's an astonishing place, loaded with natural wonders. The natural wonder I remember best, however, wasn't Old Faithful or the trout-filled streams: It was the night sky.


I grew up on a farm in eastern North Carolina, so I was used to dark, starry nights, but nothing prepared me for the inky black wonder I experienced on those isolated campsites in Yellowstone. Camping out on a moonless night in rural, isolated Wyoming is to experience the night life our ancestors knew, for all those thousands of years before the street lamps came.

Since moving to the Shenandoah Valley, some friends and I have had the pleasure of scanning the heavens from some pretty dark locations. There's nothing like viewing the Milky Way from atop a mountain. My friends, who have deep roots here in the Valley, have told me, however, that: "you should have seen these skies a generation ago... now the Valley is lit up like Christmas tree."

Indeed. The night sky today just isn't as dark as it used to be, especially on the east coast and in Europe. Satellite imagery taken over the last five decades proves it. One half of the earth's natural environment--the star-filled night-sky--is being lost in a yellow haze.

Light pollution dims our enjoyment of the heavens, disrupts wildlife and human sleep patterns, and contributes to our increasing detachment from nature.

According to National Geographic, "darkness is as essential to our biological welfare, to our internal clockwork, as light itself." Sky and Telescope magazine says "this monotonous, wasteful glow hides beautiful and richly meaningful sky wonders." It also wastes energy. The International Dark Sky Association estimates that light pollution costs at least $2.2 billion per year in the U.S. alone.

This problem, however, can be corrected with relative ease and minimal expense: turn off and reduce our lighting. Some light at night, of course, is necessary, but by reducing the number of street lamps, updating old fixtures with pollution reducing shields, using timers, photocells, and smart technology, and by simply turning off unnecessary lights, we can save money, energy, and improve our environment. It would also bring back the awesome beauty of the night.
A dark sky is an important resource worthy of protection. It is free and accessible to all, and you don't need expensive equipment to marvel at its wondrous beauty. Vincent Van Gogh said "the night is more alive and more richly colored than the day" and it inspired him to paint his masterpiece, Starry Night. It continues to inspire those of us who can still see it today. Hopefully enough to turn down the lights.

-- Matthew Poteat is an assistant professor of history at Central Virginia Community College and am amateur stargazer.

5 comments:

  1. Matthew is soooo right! Even though I can see the stars at night at my house, it's nothing like when we are far from a city. But, relatively speaking, it's darker here than when I lived in Houston, TX. And I got so used to it so quickly. I remember moving to Shenandoah County in November, and then went back to Houston for Christmas the very next month and could not sleep for all the street lights on outside. Admittedly, I did miss the lights along the freeway - at first. Now I don't even think about it. I hate all the lights and do wish we could find a way to tone it down.

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  2. Matthew's is a lovely reminder of one of the most awesome and meaningful beauties of nature; the star-studded night sky connects us to the whole cosmos. Its loss produces a diminishment of soul.

    Hearing this essay I was reminded of the words of one Donald Rumsfeld, who was just named a political hero at the APAC convention. Years ago he rhapsodized that the blaze of artificial light from South Korea visible from satellite illustrated the superiority of South Korea to North Korea, exclaiming that it represented a greater abundance of "Life!" Well, there's no question that South Korea has a much better political system than the North, but to celebrate waste as the symbol of it is a travesty, and to equate human economic activity with life itself is IMHO a kind of insanity. Matthew's essay is a soothing antidote to this kind of mental disease.

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  3. The night sky in Yellowstone gave some of us a greater understanding of souls; and many a first time glimpse into their souls. All the electronics and distractions of today can never replace one's innate internal need that can only be fulfilled from a regular venture into the complex simplicity of the natural world

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  4. The night sky in Yellowstone gave some of us a greater understanding of our souls; and many a first time glimpse into their souls. All the electronics and distractions of today can never replace one's innate internal need that can only be fulfilled from a regular venture into the complex simplicity of the natural world

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  5. We made a trip on the back roads between Cheyenne, WY and Rapid City, SD. At around 2 a.m. we were on a 2-lane road and it was pitch black. We happened to look up and what I saw took my breath, the most amazing layer upon layer of stars I've ever seen. We stopped the car and got on the hood with the kids in the silence and just looked. One of the most peaceful moments of my life.

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