globe at night an international year of astronomy dark skies awareness program
DESCRIPTION
AAS Press Briefing, Pasadena, CA, June 9, 2009. GLOBE at Night An International Year of Astronomy Dark Skies Awareness Program. Connie Walker (cell: 520-331-2448) (National Optical Astronomy Observatory) and the IYA2009 Dark Skies Working Group. Main Results. Brighter Sky. Brighter Sky. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
GLOBE at Night GLOBE at Night An International Year of AstronomyAn International Year of Astronomy
Dark Skies Awareness Program Dark Skies Awareness Program
Connie Walker (cell: 520-331-2448)(National Optical Astronomy Observatory)
and the IYA2009 Dark Skies Working Group
Connie Walker (NOAO)
AAS Press Briefing, Pasadena, CA, June 9, 2009
Main Results
• 2x the average # of GLOBE at Night measurements from previous years– Indicating an increase in people’s
awareness of the importance of a dark night sky.
• Over the last four years, the overall distribution of dark and bright skies has remained constant.
• Mindsets are changing slowly over time.– Exemplary success stories in
communities across the nation.
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Brighter Sky Darker Sky
Brighter Sky Darker Sky
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Light pollution is a global issue with local solutions…
Artificial Night Sky Brightness Increasing over Time
(Cinzano, Falchi, & Elvidge 2001)
GLOBE at Night www.globe.gov/GaN/
• Citizen-scientists record the brightness of the night sky by matching its appearance toward the constellation Orion with star maps of progressively fainter stars.
• Measurements are submitted on-line and resulting maps of all worldwide observations are created.
• .
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Over the last 4 annual two-week GLOBE at Night events, 35,000 measurements have been contributed from over 100 countries.
Measurements Taken in 2009• Twice the number of measurements on
average from previous years (>15,700)
• Measurements from more than 70 countries
• 73% from the U.S. (all 50 states)
• 900 measurements from Chile
• Over 200 each from the Czech Republic, Hungary and the United Kingdom
• 15 other countries reporting more than 100 measurements (Argentina, Australia, Canada, Colombia, Finland, Germany, Macedonia, Mexico, Poland, Romania, South Africa, Spain and Turkey)
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Sponsoring Institutions
GLOBE at Night (www.globe.gov/GaN) is a collaboration between • the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) in Tucson, AZ; • The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment
(GLOBE) Program, in Boulder, CO; • the Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc. (ESRI) in Redlands,
CA; • the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) in Tucson, AZ; and • the Centro de Apoyo a la Didactica de la Astronomia (CADIAS) in
Altovalsol, Chile. NOAO (www.noao.edu) is operated by the Association of Universities for
Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA), under the cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation.
Other partners include the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, the American Astronomical Society, the Astronomical League, Astronomers Without Borders, The World At Night, and Let There Be Night,org.
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Trends over the Last Four Years
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Brighter Skies Darker Skies
Trends over the Last Four Years
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Brighter Skies Darker Skies
Trends over the Last Four Years
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Brighter Skies Darker Skies
Bringing Dark Skies Awareness to People
"I learned that lights are a powerful thing and they can really change our effect on the world.”
- a 5th grader from Horizon Elementary in Granger, Indiana
Connie Walker (NOAO)
…things I value about the GLOBE at Night program and how we are able to incorporate it here in our community”
- Chuck Bueter, Co-Founder of “Let There Be Night”, a program centering on GLOBE at Night
First Example:3400 Measurements from 1
Community
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation (District) near South Bend, IN
Students asked, "How much of the night sky have we already lost?”
5 km
North
GLOBE at Night Map à la Legos
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Second Example:City-Wide Lighting Inventory
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Limiting Magnitude Measurements from Norman, Oklahoma
Connie Walker (NOAO)
1 km
N
Sky Quality Meter Measurements from Norman,
Oklahoma
Connie Walker (NOAO)
N
1 km
Citizen Science, Star-Hunting Programs
• GLOBE at NightGLOBE at Night–Next GLOBE at Night campaign was March 16 - 28, 2009–Orion and Sky Quality Meters–www.globe.gov/GaN
• How Many Stars? How Many Stars? –Jan, Feb, April-Sept, Nov, Dec 2009–Little Dipper and 3 belt stars in Orion–www.sternhell.at
• Great World Wide Star Count Great World Wide Star Count –Oct. 20 - Nov. 3, 2009 –Cygnus and Sagittarius–www.starcount.org
Connie Walker (NOAO)
Dark Skies Awareness Global IYA Cornerstone
PROGRAMS
Citizen Science, Star-Hunting Citizen Science, Star-Hunting Programs
Education Toolkit Toolkit
Earth Hour Planetarium Show
Quiet Skies Traveling Exhibit
Earth & Sky Photo Contest Great Switch Out
Dark Skies Discovery Sites Second-Life, Facebook, etc.
Nights in the (National) Parks Podcasts
International Dark Sky Week International Dark-Sky Communities, Parks, & Reserves
www.darkskiesawareness.org
Connie Walker (NOAO)
For more information
• Contact: Connie Walker – (IYA Dark Skies Awareness Chair ; Manager of GLOBE at Night)– 1-520-331-2448– [email protected]
• Websites of interest:– www.globe.gov/GaN/– www.darkskiesawareness.org– www.darkskiesawareness.org/files/GaN-maps/– www.darkskiesawareness.org/files/GaN-ppt/