Sunrise Sustainability Advisory Board Invites You to Get Excited about the Night Sky
How many of Sunrises’ kids have seen the Milky Way here in the city? 80%, 55%, or 20%? The answer is 20 percent. The younger the child, the less chance that they will have seen it at all. Most kids under 10 have never seen it, unless there was a broad electrical outage. This is due to light pollution, a serious problem that affects human, wildlife and plant health.
"Astronomy, including the need to deal with light pollution, is a passion of mine" says N Skye McCloud, Sustainability Advisory Board Member. As a child in Michigan, with my first telescope, I could see the rings of Saturn, craters on the moon, and the far off Andromeda galaxy. All from my own backyard. Light pollution changed that.
We are fortunate to have the Fox Observatory at Markham Park. The South Florida Amateur Astronomers Association has a 20 inch telescope to help you tour the sky. There are classes for all ages and skill levels. They will even help you set up your telescope.
If you’re willing to drive a bit, Big Cypress National Preserve is an International Dark Sky Park. It’s about 45 miles west of Miami.
The International Dark Sky Association was founded to help people and communities reduce glaring lights (outdoor lighting not properly shielded), skyglow (light directed above the horizon), and light trespass (light when it enters areas unwanted, like your windows at night). This April, I hope you will join in to Discover the Night Sky!
Dark Skies Week April 2-8
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