Friday, June 08, 2007

Second home for stargazing

Amateur astronomers in the US are building their second homes in sky villages, communities of fellow star lovers. From New York Times:
IN an astronomy village, a hush falls at night as the sky turns dark and the stars appear. Roofs roll back and telescopes aim for the heavens. All the neighbors are stargazing, and nobody turns on the lights.

Amateur astronomers, frustrated by the artificial light that obscures the stars over most urban and suburban backyards, have learned to chase the darkness to remote areas — not only for star parties and brief trips but to build second homes where they can indulge their hobby at length. And if the house can be in a community of like-minded aficionados of dark skies, so much the better.
I've always wanted a second home that is far away from the city lights so that I can enjoy my astronomy. I think the sky village concept is a very interesting one. It would be so cool to have neighbours who all love the stars and appreciate a dark sky as much as I do. Imagine going to your neighbour's place and intead of admiring their new plasma TV or new car, you talk about their new telescope or CCD camera. So fun!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

There are many of us who cannot afford second homes or fancy observatories, but are interested in living in a community that is night-sky friendly. If you're interested in exploring the concept of an affordable dark sky community further, please join the Yahoo! discussion group DarkSkyCommunities.

Clear, dark, and starry skies,

David Oesper
DarkSkyCommunities Moderator
Dodgeville, Wisconsin

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