Discover the Night - International Dark Sky Week

Image of the Great Rift of the Milky Way by NASA/A.Fujii.

Every evening there is a fabulous free show available to everyone. To attend, turn off the lights, go outdoors, and look up... the universe awaits. You don't need any fancy equipment to begin your night sky viewing. But it is great to have a pair of binoculars and a folding lounge-style lawn chair to look upward while resting your neck.

International Dark Sky Week runs through April 22. Check to see if your community is holding any Dark Sky activities. 

Resources:

• Night Sky Tour - April 22, 7-9:00 pm by the Southern Maine Astronomers
  179 Neptune Drive, Brunswick. Open to the public.
  FMI: www.southernmaineastronomers.org
• Sky Map for April, 2023
• Get children involved. Watch as NASA astronaut Thomas Marshburn reads out loud from the children’s book “Goodnight Moon” by Margaret Wise Brown while floating in microgravity aboard the International Space Station. Then make a plan to view the moon and stars together.
• Listen to this Maine Calling program about the Dark Sky movement in Maine to learn how you can easily retain needed lighting without light up the night sky, and why darkness is required for the health of humans, other animals, and plants.
• Learn how people all over the world are working to reduce light pollution at the International Dark Sky Association.

2012 image by NASA of the USA showing the glow of lights from cities and towns. Natural night skies are becoming increasingly rare though nighttime darkness is needed for the health of humans, other animals, and plants.

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