I used to live in SE Idaho. The night sky out in the desert is one of the hidden wonders there.
Cool! We were in Ketchum and Stanley in July. It is a magnificent place.
I’m very surprised to see that Mont Meganticmin Quebec is the only other recognized dark place in the Americas. That spot was made famous by Arnold’s march on Quebec that ultimately foiled the British plans to cut the New England colonies off from their brethren to the south.
Maybe it’s dark in Megantic because the sun never shines there.
Or they could just travel to North Korea.
“Proponents of the reserve plan to file an application this fall to designate 1,400 square miles of central Idaho as part of the dark sky territory.”
“Proponents” = two stoned hippies and one drunk democrat mayor.
This article is typical Nazi propaganda from the vile and discredited AP.
They don’t seem to be associated with the UN or any other corrupt organization, so I’m good with it.
“Dark sky” reservation?
Is this part of some reparations for slavery scheme? Or are they looking to get all of the dark sky and ghettoize it one place so that the rest of the sky doesn’t have to see the dark sky? Sure sounds racist to me!
There’s also a small town (I don’t recall the name) in southeast Arizona that goes to great lengths to avoid outside artifical light.
Sandrat - do you recall what it is?
One of those outstanding plans I can heartily endorse. I was in Stanley last fall just before they rolled up the streets. What a wonderful place that needs to remain just like it is and require someone to die for anyone new to move in.
Oh well...
I have seen amazing things out in the NM desert at night :-)
Great place to have a nice Celestron telescope.
Just another excuse to take more land away from us in Idaho.
Parks are created for any number of reasons. So long as the current owners of the land are fairly compensated and then some, I see no problem with it. The outer suburbs surrounding me all have dark skies ordinances, street lights and retail lights have to be shielded to project light downward to avoid light pollution. I miss seeing the Milky Way, I don’t object at all. I went on vacation to the northern Outer Banks last month, pretty remote to the point that cell reception is questionable, and it was glorious at night. I’d forgotten how awesome it is.
There certainly spots on the big island Hawaii, where there are no surrounding lights to distract from the dark sky.
The view is certainly marketable.
I think this needs a fleshed out plan though. Maybe combine windowless casinos, infrared ‘play’ areas... some ‘kicker’ to make it pay.
I thought this was going to be about a concentration camp for Hollyweird celebrities.
I went to Mongolia last year, and the night sky was absolutely amazing there, in the Gobi. The fact that the nomads do not use outdoor lighting at night combined with the elevation made for some spectacular views at night.
When I was a kid in northern California, the night sky was also stunning. But here in Maryland, only the brightest stars (planets) are ever visible.
Darn, a full body mount of Jennifer Lawrence would fit right over next to the fireplace. (In a crouch with an arrow in her mouth.)
Good idea for star gazers though. Oh well, the thought tickles me a bit though. :)
We had a hurricane and the whole state was a blackout zone
I’m all for it. Can’t even see most of the bright stars from the DC area. Not smog pollution. Light pollution.
There is no reason for so many lights being on at night (other than for safety and physical/building security).