GLOBE at Night An International Year of Astronomy Dark Skies Awareness Program

1. 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 Connie Walker (NOAO)

2. Main Results Brighter Sky Brighter Sky Darker Sky Darker Sky • 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)

3. Light pollution is a global issue with local solutions… Connie Walker (NOAO)

4. Artificial Night Sky Brightness Increasing over Time (Cinzano, Falchi, & Elvidge 2001)

5. 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. • . Over the last 4 annual two-week GLOBE at Night events, 35,000 measurements have been contributed from over 100 countries. Connie Walker (NOAO)

6. 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)

7. 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)

8. Trends over the Last Four Years Brighter Skies Darker Skies Connie Walker (NOAO)

9. Trends over the Last Four Years Brighter Skies Darker Skies Connie Walker (NOAO)

10. Trends over the Last Four Years Brighter Skies Darker Skies Connie Walker (NOAO)

11. 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 …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 Connie Walker (NOAO)

12. First Example:3400 Measurements from 1 Community North 5 km Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation (District) near South Bend, IN Students asked, "How much of the night sky have we already lost?” Connie Walker (NOAO)

13. GLOBE at Night Map à la Legos Connie Walker (NOAO)

14. Second Example:City-Wide Lighting Inventory • Students from 2 high schools their teachers and amateur astronomers banded together to undertake a lighting inventory of their city during GLOBE at Night. They used 2 methods of measure. • The Mayor of Norman Oklahoma and the city’s Environmental Control Advisory Board (ECAB) endorsed the lighting inventory. • The students and their teachers presented the results to the ECAB. • The ECAB wants to partner with the students and teachers, asking them to be the outside agitating voicein the media to put the issue of revising the lighting ordinances front and center.  • When the new city council is sworn in in July, it is expected that the group will be called in to discuss changes in the lighting ordinances. Connie Walker (NOAO)

15. Limiting Magnitude Measurements from Norman, Oklahoma N 1 km Connie Walker (NOAO)

16. Sky Quality Meter Measurements from Norman, Oklahoma N 1 km Connie Walker (NOAO)

17. Citizen Science, Star-Hunting Programs • GLOBE at Night • Next GLOBE at Night campaign was March 16 - 28, 2009 • Orion and Sky Quality Meters • www.globe.gov/GaN • 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 • Oct. 20 - Nov. 3, 2009 • Cygnus and Sagittarius • www.starcount.org Connie Walker (NOAO)

18. Dark Skies Awareness Global IYA Cornerstone www.darkskiesawareness.org

19. For more information • Contact: Connie Walker • (IYA Dark Skies Awareness Chair ; Manager of GLOBE at Night) • 1-520-331-2448 • cwalker@noao.edu • Websites of interest: • www.globe.gov/GaN/ • www.darkskiesawareness.org • www.darkskiesawareness.org/files/GaN-maps/ • www.darkskiesawareness.org/files/GaN-ppt/ Connie Walker (NOAO)