How to guide... Developing Dark Sky Opportunities RHONDDA CYNON TAF

Transcription

1 How to guide... Developing Dark Sky Opportunities RHONDDA CYNON TAF

2 How to guide... Developing Dark Sky Opportunities In Wales we have seen an increase in astro tourism, the Dark Sky International Reserve in the Brecon Beacons and programmes such as Star Gazing Live have ignited an interest for many to look up into the night sky and experience natural phenomenon such as meteor showers, lunar eclipse, Aurora Borealis, the solar eclipse or just simply view the stars and planets. In the South Wales Valleys we have many vantage points which are shielded from the street lights and provide clear views of the night sky.

3 Image from: CPRE In the above picture the large amount of land in Wales with little light pollution is clearly visible. A number of sites within Rhondda Cynon Taf have been designated Dark Sky Discovery Sites and some have achieved the highest award of Milky Way class, these are: Milky Way Class Hendre Mynydd Car Park, Rhigos Mountain Garn Eiddel car Park, Maerdy Mountain Lay-by Bwlch Mountain Rd Daerwynno Outdoor Activity Centre The Red Lion, Penderyn Orion Class Dare Valley Country Park Barry Sidings Countryside Park Rose and Crown pub, Eglywsilan

4 LIGHTING

5 Lighting Artificial lighting affects the view of the night sky, in densely populated areas, there are very few stars that can be observed, especially where old orange sodium lights are still in use, these lights are expensive to run and provide very little light, as the beam tends to be scattered. The new LED lights are far more efficient in terms of light beam direction and cost, as they are more efficient you need less to light the road network. The LED lights can also be dimmed, which helps reduce light pollution levels. Each Local Authority has a planned programme of installing these new lights. In Rhondda Cynon Taf 2500 old sodium lights have been replaced, with an additional 2000 being updated. How can the provider make this happen? Can they find out when their street lights will be changed?

6 Below is an example of the constellation of Orion, the picture on the right is far more prominent, this picture is from a site free of any light pollution, so the night sky opens up showing lower magnitude stars. In the picture on the left the constellation isn t as clear, and there are fewer stars in the sky. How to guide... Developing Dark Sky Opportunities In the night we are kept safe on the roads and pavements with street lights, there may also be household lights at the front of the property, security lights as well as lights from inside a building, shining out, these can all affect the views of the night sky. Can your security lights be switched off when observing the night sky? In Rhondda Cynon Taf every other street light in certain areas are turned off between midnight and 5am, others are dimmed. For further information please visit: kingroadsandtravel/roadspavementsand paths/partnightlightingfaqs.aspx

7 Exercise: It would be worth looking at your own property, sketch your property, then highlight the lighting around the property e.g. street lights (front & back), security lights, light shining from inside the property etc, front door/back door lights - see example below. Light Sources: Street lights Security light Window Door The above example shows the various sources of light pollution, the above example isn t a hopeless case, there are some minor changes which can improve the situation: 1. Use black out curtains/blinds at the rear of the property, this would reduce the light shining from the house. 2. Security/door lights can be turned off 3. Ask your neighbours to change the angle of their security lights or if this becomes a nuisance you can call the local authority and raise a light nuisance call. 4. Some street lights are being turned off in some areas after midnight. 5. Utilise your nearest Dark Sky Discovery Site transports guest to the Dark Sky Discovery Site?

8 THE NIGHT SKY

9 The night sky It is worth having a basic understanding of the stars and planets which make up the night sky. The easiest constellations are those around the polar regions. These stars will rotate throughout the night and year, however the patterns will become familiar. The majority of the constellations in the northern hemisphere were named by the Greeks, and each has a story of how they became part of the night sky (there are many books available which provide information about each constellation, with their attached myth). There are also our planetary neighbours who appear in the night sky Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Other astronomical events happen throughout the year such as meteor showers, comets or viewing the space station. The link below highlights the main astronomical events: astronomy-calendar-2016.html

10 Constellations around the polar regions: The North Star How to guide... Developing Dark Sky Opportunities KEY The North Star Camelopardalis Cassiopeia Ursa Minor Watch out for... The Constellation will change their positions in the night sky Draco Ursa Major Cepheus

11 Exercise: It would be worth deciding the location for any night sky observation at your property 1. Look at the orientation of the location e.g east, west, north or south. 2. Look for the above constellations, to see where they appear throughout the year. 3. Read up on the mythology of the constellations. 4. Look at the astronomy calendar and look at opportunities to promote your property. 5. Is there anything you can provide to make viewing the night more comfortable e.g hot chocolate in a flask, sun loungers with warm blankets to lie down on to observe (especially for meteor showers), lifts to Dark Sky Discovery Sites, or have a local astronomer run an event. 6. If you haven t got any opportunities within your property, look at any events the council are holding, or utilise the Dark Sky Discovery Sites. Equipment: You don t need expensive telescopes, a good pair of binoculars 10/50 or 8/40 are suitable for viewing the night sky. It is worth having some of the following items available: 1. Phillips Planisphere latitude 51.5 north (for use in Britain and Ireland). 2. Book on the constellations with mythology. 3. General book about the night sky.

12 For more information: Strategy, PR and Tourism JN Oct 2016