Latest news with #Bortle
The Star
12-07-2025
- Science
- The Star
Dim lights so stars can shine bright
It takes about 30 minutes for eyes to fully adjust to total darkness and only then does the night sky reveal its hidden constellations. Most nights, the city's glow keeps regular folk from viewing the stars. Under Kuala Selangor skies, on a recent trip with Tourism Malaysia and Sahabat Langit Utara (Salut), I found myself in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by darkness and silence. With no lights to distract from the stillness of the night, the stars slowly showed themselves. An app called Stellarium, with its gyroscope feature, helped us navigate the sky. Moving my phone around, the app named each star and traced how they join together to form constellations. After an hour, the sky grew clearer. Away from light pollution, the human eye begins to grasp the vastness of the universe. Staring at the Milky Way reminds us that we are just specks of dust and what we see is far more complex than the mind can truly comprehend. The Milky Way can be seen on a clear, cloudless night from places with minimal light pollution.— Filepic As Salut founder Nurul Fatini Jaafar explained, 'The Milky Way appears as a thin band of cloud that stays still and does not fade away. 'It is something we often forget to be grateful for, a natural wonder now hidden from much of the world by one main culprit: light pollution.' To measure darkness, astronomers use the Bortle dark-sky scale, which ranges from Class 1 (the darkest skies where the Milky Way shines brilliantly) to Class 9 (city lights drown out all but the brightest stars). In Kuala Selangor, areas far from city lights can reach Class 3 or 4, dark enough to reveal thousands of stars and the Milky Way's delicate band on a clear, cloudless night. One of Salut's goals is to establish more dark-sky areas, far from urban glow, so our eyes can fully adapt and the cosmos can shine through. According to a 2016 study by scientific journal Science Advances, Singapore's entire population lives under skies too bright to see the Milky Way, with 100% of its territory affected. San Marino (100%) and Malta (89%) face similar levels of light pollution that keep the galaxy hidden from view. It's at a level of light pollution that prevents eyes from ever fully adapting to true darkness. Light pollution in Malaysia is also a concern. A recent Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) study found that fireflies could mistake artificial lights for the flashes of other fireflies, leading them to abandon traditional mating grounds. This shows that light pollution affects not only people but also wildlife. However, there is hope. Earlier this month, the Malaysian Space Agency (MYSA) announced it was working on a light pollution guideline to help preserve astronomical activities, including astrotourism. Expected to be ready by 2026, the guideline aims to minimise the impact of artificial lighting at night, supporting astronomy initiatives and the conservation of our natural environment. In parts of Malaysia, such as rural Kedah, it is still possible to experience a Class 1 sky. Fraser's Hill, near Kuala Kubu Baru, also offers spectacular stargazing conditions. These locations are among the highlights in Tourism Malaysia's upcoming stargazing packages that open the door to astrotourism. Over time, we forget that stargazing once guided sailors to safe shores and farmers, in terms of changing seasons. The stars are something worth looking up at and preserving for generations to come.
Hamilton Spectator
06-06-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
This national park in Canada is a stargazer's dream, with pristine dark skies and a chance to see northern lights
Only in Canada is a new travel series that acts as a love letter to the bucket-list destinations and experiences in our beautiful country. Look for the Only in Canada series every week. The sun casts a pink glow, melting into the prairie panorama of rolling green hills and endless plains. It's quiet here — oh so quiet, except for the rustling sagebrush bending to the wind's whim, and the coyotes yipping in the distance. Soon, a few twinkling stars emerge in the darkness, then thousands of them and eventually millions. They're so bright, they illuminate the seemingly infinite night sky. Peering up in awe, you can't help but feel both trivial yet inextricably, peacefully connected to the universe. This is Grasslands National Park , in southwest Saskatchewan near the Montana border. A remote, wide-open landscape spanning 730 square kilometres, this was designated a Dark-Sky Preserve by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada in 2009. And it's considered 'the darkest Dark-Sky Preserve in Canada,' according to the Canadian Space Agency. There's nearly zero light pollution. In technical terms, it measures 1 (the lowest possible score) on the Bortle scale of night brightness. Visitors to Grasslands National Park may see constellations, meteor showers, the aurora borealis and more. Grasslands keeps its skies so dark by restricting light use, and ensuring any necessary lights cast reddish hues in a downward direction — all efforts to avoid disrupting the nocturnal wildlife here, including owls, bats and swift foxes. 'The feeling of vastness and connection to the sky — it's comforting, like being wrapped in a blanket of sky, with the wind at your ankles,' describes stargazing enthusiast Nicholas Ypelaar, an interpretation co-ordinator at the national park. He's a recent Ontario transplant drawn by Grasslands' night skies and birds. 'You never know what you might see, but you always see something exciting.' Within Canada, Grasslands is the largest intact swath of endangered mixed-grass ecosystem — the country's most threatened and least protected ecosystem. The park's rich biodiversity includes more than 30 at-risk species of flora and fauna, all of which depend on this rare environment. Grasslands National Park's diverse wildlife includes approximately 400 to 500 bison, a keystone species here. Bison graze the blue grama grasses. Prairie rattlesnakes and northern scorpions, greater short-horned lizards and swift foxes call this place home. More likely, though, you'll spot bounding pronghorn antelopes or scurrying badgers, or be entertained by the greater sage grouse's elaborate courting rituals. This is also the only place in Canada where black-tailed prairie dogs, that charismatic, chatty species, exist. Beyond the pristine skies and rare wildlife, history also sets this park apart: 'The darkness is important,' says Ypelaar, 'but only here do you have a full, unobstructed, 360-degree view where you can follow in the footsteps of humans who have been here for millennia, once guided by the night sky.' Grasslands has remained largely unchanged since its first inhabitants, the A'aninin, followed migrating bison to the park more than 10,000 years ago. Later, other Indigenous communities, including the Nakoda, Nehiyawak, Niisitapi, Lakota and Dakota, would follow, making this their seasonal ancestral home. The park's rich Indigenous history is still evident today, through thousands of undisturbed pre-contact sites, artifacts and over 20,000 tipi rings. By day, travellers can explore the park's dramatically different landscapes, including the prairie grasslands of the West Block, and the rugged hoodoos and badlands of the East Block. By evening, elevated areas like 70-Mile Butte or the Eastend trail offer especially beautiful views as sunset turns to nightfall. A view from the Valley of 1000 Devils Trail. Grasslands National Park is vast and varied in its landscapes. 'On a clear night, the Milky Way stretches from one horizon to the other, becoming part of the landscape,' says Ypelaar. Gaze longer and you may see constellations, meteor showers, the aurora borealis. You might even glimpse colourful airglow — static bands of streaking light — which is rare to observe with the naked eye. Spring and fall are peak times for swirling aurora at the Two Trees and Belza day use areas, with summertime ideal to spot the Milky Way's central arch. Bring binoculars or a modest telescope to look for further celestial marvels, such as star clusters, nebulae and galaxies, including Andromeda. What really excites amateur and professional astronomers is the chance to observe deep-sky objects listed in the Messier Catalogue, a sort of bible for stargazers. 'Stargazing is a beginner-friendly hobby. You don't have to be an astronomer to enjoy these sights,' declares Ypelaar, who suggests picking up a star map at the park's visitor centre as a starting point. 'It's an iconic experience in the province.' Jenn Smith Nelson is a Saskatchewan-based travel writer who considers Grasslands National Park her favourite place in the province.
Toronto Star
05-06-2025
- Toronto Star
This national park in Canada is a stargazer's dream, with pristine dark skies and a chance to see northern lights
Canadian Travel Only in Canada is a new travel series that acts as a love letter to the bucket-list destinations and experiences in our beautiful country. Look for the Only in Canada series every week. The sun casts a pink glow, melting into the prairie panorama of rolling green hills and endless plains. It's quiet here — oh so quiet, except for the rustling sagebrush bending to the wind's whim, and the coyotes yipping in the distance. Soon, a few twinkling stars emerge in the darkness, then thousands of them and eventually millions. They're so bright, they illuminate the seemingly infinite night sky. Peering up in awe, you can't help but feel both trivial yet inextricably, peacefully connected to the universe. This is Grasslands National Park, in southwest Saskatchewan near the Montana border. A remote, wide-open landscape spanning 730 square kilometres, this was designated a Dark-Sky Preserve by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada in 2009. And it's considered 'the darkest Dark-Sky Preserve in Canada,' according to the Canadian Space Agency. There's nearly zero light pollution. In technical terms, it measures 1 (the lowest possible score) on the Bortle scale of night brightness. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Visitors to Grasslands National Park may see constellations, meteor showers, the aurora borealis and more. Nicholas Ypelaar Grasslands keeps its skies so dark by restricting light use, and ensuring any necessary lights cast reddish hues in a downward direction — all efforts to avoid disrupting the nocturnal wildlife here, including owls, bats and swift foxes. 'The feeling of vastness and connection to the sky — it's comforting, like being wrapped in a blanket of sky, with the wind at your ankles,' describes stargazing enthusiast Nicholas Ypelaar, an interpretation co-ordinator at the national park. He's a recent Ontario transplant drawn by Grasslands' night skies and birds. 'You never know what you might see, but you always see something exciting.' Within Canada, Grasslands is the largest intact swath of endangered mixed-grass ecosystem — the country's most threatened and least protected ecosystem. The park's rich biodiversity includes more than 30 at-risk species of flora and fauna, all of which depend on this rare environment. Grasslands National Park's diverse wildlife includes approximately 400 to 500 bison, a keystone species here. Jenn Smith Nelson Bison graze the blue grama grasses. Prairie rattlesnakes and northern scorpions, greater short-horned lizards and swift foxes call this place home. More likely, though, you'll spot bounding pronghorn antelopes or scurrying badgers, or be entertained by the greater sage grouse's elaborate courting rituals. This is also the only place in Canada where black-tailed prairie dogs, that charismatic, chatty species, exist. Beyond the pristine skies and rare wildlife, history also sets this park apart: 'The darkness is important,' says Ypelaar, 'but only here do you have a full, unobstructed, 360-degree view where you can follow in the footsteps of humans who have been here for millennia, once guided by the night sky.' Grasslands has remained largely unchanged since its first inhabitants, the A'aninin, followed migrating bison to the park more than 10,000 years ago. Later, other Indigenous communities, including the Nakoda, Nehiyawak, Niisitapi, Lakota and Dakota, would follow, making this their seasonal ancestral home. The park's rich Indigenous history is still evident today, through thousands of undisturbed pre-contact sites, artifacts and over 20,000 tipi rings. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW By day, travellers can explore the park's dramatically different landscapes, including the prairie grasslands of the West Block, and the rugged hoodoos and badlands of the East Block. By evening, elevated areas like 70-Mile Butte or the Eastend trail offer especially beautiful views as sunset turns to nightfall. A view from the Valley of 1000 Devils Trail. Grasslands National Park is vast and varied in its landscapes. Tourism Saskatchewan 'On a clear night, the Milky Way stretches from one horizon to the other, becoming part of the landscape,' says Ypelaar. Gaze longer and you may see constellations, meteor showers, the aurora borealis. You might even glimpse colourful airglow — static bands of streaking light — which is rare to observe with the naked eye. Spring and fall are peak times for swirling aurora at the Two Trees and Belza day use areas, with summertime ideal to spot the Milky Way's central arch. Bring binoculars or a modest telescope to look for further celestial marvels, such as star clusters, nebulae and galaxies, including Andromeda. What really excites amateur and professional astronomers is the chance to observe deep-sky objects listed in the Messier Catalogue, a sort of bible for stargazers. 'Stargazing is a beginner-friendly hobby. You don't have to be an astronomer to enjoy these sights,' declares Ypelaar, who suggests picking up a star map at the park's visitor centre as a starting point. 'It's an iconic experience in the province.' Jenn Smith Nelson is a Saskatchewan-based travel writer who considers Grasslands National Park her favourite place in the province.
