The Hidden Lights of a Dark Sky Night

The Hidden Lights Of

By Tristan Ashton

You’re out in the country on a warm and moonless night, far from any cities or lights. It’s just you and your dog as the clock ticks slowly towards midnight. It should be absolutely dark…but you see shadows! A soft light permeates the air, casting the trees in ghostly silhouettes—a light whose only source is the Milky Way itself.

It seems improbable that the Milky Way, a tight but nebulous band of starlight, could cast visible shadows. And yet in the most remote regions of the world, such as the center of Death Valley or far out in the Pacific Ocean, it becomes a nightly occurrence. How can you possibly measure the stark difference between the Milky Way’s soft illuminations with the glowing nightlife of inner cities? El Morro National Monument, with its recent certification as an International Dark Sky Park (IDSP), provides an answer.

The Bortle Scale is a measurement created in 2001 to help evaluate the quality of a night sky. In the complete absence of artificial light, the scale bottoms out at a “1,” indicating the darkest skies theoretically possible. In such a site, the glow of the Milky Way casts visible shadows on the ground and the brightest stars can actually impair your night vision!

Progressing up the scale to “4” and “5,” the Milky Way is barely detectable, and the number of visible stars drops markedly from several thousand to just a few hundred. Light domes from nearby cities become

A Dark Night Sky

International Dark-Sky Association

NPS Photo/Derek Wallentinsen

large on the horizon, and those ghostly trees become distinguishable. All the way up the scale at “8” and “9,” in the very center of large urban cities, you see nothing but light glow from the city itself and barely a few stars.

El Morro National Monument clocks in at a “3,” a distinction boasted by few other sites in the continental United States. Due in part to the enthusiastic support from its surrounding communities, the El Morro valley has kept its skies dark and begun promoting public outreach and education about the importance of responsible outdoor lighting. The monument was unanimously endorsed by the International Dark-Sky Association Board of Directors as “a land possessing an exceptional or distinguished quality of starry nights.”

A night sky celebration event will be hosted on June 13th to honor this historic achievement. In the meantime, a star party event will be held on March 14th showcasing the North Star. Visit the park’s website for details and watch for our next article in the April edition of the Gallup Journey.

El Morro documents more than 2,000 historic inscriptions and petroglyphs, bringing visitors face to face with personal vignettes of history long past. Join park staff for special upcoming programs to experience the wonders of the same night sky that Native Americans and early travelers knew.

For more information, please call the El Morro National Monument Visitor Center at 505-783-4226 (ext. 850), or visit us online at nps.gov/elmo or facebook.com/elmorro.nps.

Gallup Cultural Museum’s Grand Reopening

March 5th AT 5:30pm

201 E Hwy 66 | 505-863-4131 | 8AM–4PM For more information, contact James Eby, Director, Gallup Cultural Center, at 505-863-4131 or at directorgcc@gmail.com.