National Parks Offer Star-Studded Skies in 2010
MotorHome, February 9, 2010 - read full article here...

On your next national park visit, remember that a spectacular sunset is just the prelude to the wonders of the night sky.

“Thousands of people made that discovery last year, in part because 2009 was the International Year of Astronomy, 400 years after Galileo turned his telescope to the heavens,” said National Park Service Director Jon Jarvis. “This year we’ll introduce tens of thousands more visitors to the night sky through programs at about 60 national parks.”

To help meet the demand for night sky interpretive programs, the National Park Service Night Sky Program last year recruited 19 volunteer astronomers from around the country who were then placed in national parks, started a loaner telescope collection, produced audio podcasts and brochures, and supported the stellar night sky poster art by Dr. Tyler Nordgren, an astronomer at the University of Redlands, California.

Nordgren spent a one-year sabbatical in national parks where he collected his experiences into a book and drafted the series of 14 posters that harken to the Works Progress Administration posters of the 1930's. The full series of night sky posters is available for browsing here.

“Even though our sources of inspiration may change, the value of national parks grows over time,” Director Jarvis said. “And as the backyard starry sky is lost to urban America, people increasingly seek it in their national parks.

“The night sky is every bit a part of the park as land, water, wildlife and those famous sunrise and sunset scenes. It’s our responsibility and our pleasure to preserve the night sky for this and future generations.”

Visit online at http://www.nature.nps.gov/air/lightscapes