. . One of my fondest memories of my last visit to the Grand Tetons was the night sky. Forty-nine years ago, as Sharyn and I drove back from Yellowstone to our cabin near Jackson Hole lodge, the road was lit only by the stars in the sky. It was an experience that I have failed to duplicate since then and I have really tried. A program on NPR, about the loss of the "night" sky and that the majority of Americans may never witness the Milky Way, reminded me of it.
. . I thought I would check out darkness in Yellowstone to see if we might again have that opportunity. Below is a picture from space. Click on it to enlarge it. The view may not be as spectacular as it was for us nearly fifty years ago, but it looks good.
Hi Tom. I just watched a doc on Netflix called The City Dark which is about just that. It does a great job covering all angles and has incredible astro-footage. Being the city-dweller I am, I'm definitely looking forward to being reacquainted with a fully starlit night!
ReplyDeleteNicole, it is truly an amazing sight and I plan to star-gaze on at least one evening. I suspect Ben Cowan, another Dark Sky Advocate, will be joining me. That sight can be a once in a lifetime experience. For most of my life I have tried hard to duplicate a sky I witnessed on a September evening 49 years ago in the Grand Tetons. Attempts In Flagstaff AZ, Hawaii, and on several boats in the ocean near Alaska, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Mediterranean, never matched that sky. The critical factors are the absence of light pollution, the altitude, low humidity, and location of the moon. If conditions are right, the sky can be as memorable as any earth-bound attraction. It has certainly haunted me.
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