Dark Skies

We are celebrating Earth Week with an effort to promote Dark Skies.
Wednesday, Logan Mayor Daines signed a proclamation and read it to the city council.
Proclamation: Lights Out for Birds, May 8-14, 2022
Proclamation: Lights Out for Birds, April 19-25, 2021 https://www.loganutah.org/government/mayor_s_office/index.php

Dark Skies: Milky Way above Chesler Park Canyonlands National Park Courtesy US National Park Service Emily Ogden, Photographer

Milky Way above Chesler Park
Canyonlands National Park
Courtesy US National Park Service
Emily Ogden, Photographer
Canyonlands is one of many parks in southern Utah with the International Dark Sky Park designation

Dark Skies are not only a problem for astronomers. They also cause problems for migrating birds and insects.
Read about the problem of dark skies from the articles below. If you are installing external lights, pay attention to the fixtures and install the fixtures and wattages compatible with dark skies concepts.

Audubon Rockies and Dark Skies:

Lights Out, Save migratory birds by turning off outdoor lights, Audubon Rockies, https://rockies.audubon.org/lights-out

It’s Time to Turn Off Lights to Save Birds, Audubon Rockies, August 30, 2021, https://rockies.audubon.org/news/it%E2%80%99s-time-turn-lights-save-birds

Light Pollution Poses Threat to Migrating Birds, International Dark-Sky Association, May 9, 2019, https://www.darksky.org/light-pollution-poses-threat-to-migrating-birds/#:~:text=Given%20that%20most%20songbirds%20migrate,also%20disorient%20birds%20during%20migration.

National Audubon Society and International Dark-Sky Association Partner to Protect the Night Sky for Birds and People, National Audubon Society, September 11, 2020, https://www.audubon.org/news/national-audubon-society-and-international-dark-sky-association-partner-protect

Kelly, Grace, Insects Do It in the Dark: Glaring Problem of Light Pollution Has Simple Solutions, ecoRI News, June 18, 2020, https://www.ecori.org/pollution-contamination/2020/6/17/night-lights-do-nothing-to-calm-the-beasts

Walker, Connie, A Silent Cry for Dark-Skies, National Optical Astronomy Observatory, Astronomical Society of the Pacific, https://astrosociety.org/file_download/af8838b4-7bef-458e-bd9d-883a04da04fe

Threats to Birds: Collisions-Buildings & Glass, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, https://www.fws.gov/story/threats-birds-collisions-buildings-glass

For billions of years, all life has relied on Earth’s predictable rhythm of day and night. It’s encoded in the DNA of all plants and animals. Humans have radically disrupted this cycle by lighting up the night.

Plants and animals depend on Earth’s daily cycle of light and dark rhythm to govern life-sustaining behaviors such as reproduction, nourishment, sleep and protection from predators.

Scientific evidence suggests that artificial light at night has negative and deadly effects on many creatures including amphibians, birds, mammals, insects and plants. Light Pollution Effects on Wildlife and Ecosystems, The International Dark-Sky Association

The International Dark-Sky Association, https://www.darksky.org/our-work/lighting/public-policy/lighting-ordinances/

Lighting Ordinances, Lighting, Public Policy, The International Dark-Sky Association, https://www.darksky.org/

Utah Dark Sky Parks, Utah Office of Tourism, https://www.visitutah.com/places-to-go/dark-sky-parks