When Was the Last Time You Saw Stars?

in #ecotrain7 years ago (edited)

Standing out under the stars tonight, I am reminded how nourishing the stars are.

How they teach and remind us of what it is to be human.

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Go to www.darksky.org

They put us down to size, reminding us how small we are in the big scheme of things. How there are entire galaxies out there beyond our Milky Way!

I live out in the country so I get to see more stars than most...

They are so nourishing to my soul!

It reminds me of a night spent in New Mexico at Chaco canyon...

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(Me in a 1000 year old stone wall with original mud mortar at Chaco Canyon in New Mexico)

We went to see through the big telescope and looked at super novas that were all sorts of colors...

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source

That night I learned about the International Dark Sky Association and that 80% of humans never see stars! Man that just broke my heart!!

"According to the 2016 groundbreaking “World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness,” 80 percent of the world’s population lives under skyglow. In the United States and Europe 99 percent of the public can’t experience a natural night!"

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Go to www.darksky.org

All humans deserve to see stars!

Light pollution has definitely taken over, especially in cities.

As the International Dark Sky Association (IDA) says on their website:

"Less than 100 years ago, everyone could look up and see a spectacular starry night sky. Now, millions of children across the globe will never experience the Milky Way where they live. The increased and widespread use of artificial light at night is not only impairing our view of the universe, it is adversely affecting our environment, our safety, our energy consumption and our health."

How Bad is it where I live? (<<< click here)

Where Can I See the Stars!?!?! (<<< click here)

Here’s what you can do to lower light pollution on where you are:

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From

Find Dark Sky Friendly Lighting

Follow IDA on Twitter... To keep abreast at recent news:
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Twitter

And from the IDA's website:

"You can start by minimizing the light from your own home at night. You can do this by following these simple steps.

  • Learn more. Check out our Light Pollution blog posts
  • Only use lighting when and where it’s needed
  • If safety is concern, install motion detector lights and timers
  • Properly shield all outdoor lights
  • Keep your blinds drawn to keep light inside
  • Become a citizen scientist and helping to measure light pollution

Everyone deserves to see the stars!!

Minimize that light pollution, y'all! <3

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There's a small hill near my city where you can partially see the Milky Way.

I live in a small city with not much pollution so I guess I'm lucky.

<3

I miss seeing the stars so much. I wish there was something I could do about it. I have been trying for years to get the streetlights switched off around my house, but it's very hard to get anyone with the authority to do it to take light pollution seriously. Fact is, many grown people are scared of the dark.

Oh fantastic point @stillgideon! Many grown people are afraid of the dark! I’m sorry to hear about your street light tho I fear that is not uncommon! I hope you have success finding someone with the authority to do it <3

Well, the problem isn't just finding someone to switch the lights off - it's also the neighbours who want them kept on. I think there should be at least one night a week when street lights are not turned on. It would save a lot of electricity and give people a chance to see the stars.

Once i visited uluru in Australia., far out in the desert. I will NEVER forget how many stars i saw on a clear night.. wow

Mmmm I bet that was amazing! Gives me tingles thinking about it!

I love watching the stars. When my husband was deployed it gave me comfort to know he might be out there staring up at the same stars as me :)

<3 that's really touching

We live in a small town in Missouri and we never take the visibility of the stars for granted! A lot of my friends and family moved to the city and every time they visit home, they almost always say something about how nice it is to see the stars again :)

AWww yeah! We live in a small town in missouri, too! i wonder if we're close to one another ;) <3 we sure do have good stars here! xx

I saw your location was in the Ozarks so I wondered that myself!!! ;) We are in Mountain View. We live at the edge of our little town and have one streetlamp on our road. We have a nice view of the stars here but the best view is out by the river or during a nice nighttime drive on the backroads! ❤️❤️❤️

Aw we're super close! i live about 45 min west of west plains... <3 hope to see ya around these country roads some day ;) if you grow food, i'd love to invite you to our local homegrown food summit!

Oh nice!!! We’re crazy close, considering I stumbled across your blog from a comment on a Canadian’s post lol!! Your homegrown food summit sounds amazing! We do grow our own food, although we didn’t have a garden this past summer. I’m excited to get back to it!!! Woohoo, I just made a new “local” friend on Steemit! 😁 I love this place!

no worries!! cool are you on discord? i'll let ya know the deets! there's actually a meetup this sunday....

i LOVE that we met through a canadian! my partner's from canada (i'm from indiana).. so i guess that's fitting :)

getting local on steemit!!! <3

Small world! Yes, I’m on discord. Same username! (but I’m pretty new to it and still figuring it out). I’d love to go to one of your meet ups so message me some info if you don’t mind and we’ll come check it out!!!

Getting local on Steemit... I love it!!!

Do u have # after your name ? Mine are
mountainjewel#0238

I was literally just talking about how its a shame how bright the city is all the time. It makes my head spin!
And the stars are a fundamental part of our human history and of our nature, they evolve with our stories and our civilizations.
The night-time sky is glorious and enchanting. Maybe people would have more peace of mind if they could see the night sky and were not assulted by artificial light all the time!

Yes excellent point @skycae. The storytelling aspect of stars makes us who we are indeed and weaves the stories that define our lives.. totally agree it brings peace of mind <3

gran post amig@ mucha suerte y éxitos para su blog, saludos:)

gracias hermano! mucha suerta a tu tambien <3

para eso estamos:) seria de gran ayuda si pasaras por mi blog en tu tiempo libre:)

Yes! This was one of the reasons we chose a place so far away from 'civilisation'. we have many visitors coming here and asking us what isthe white streak in the sky at night, not knowing it is the milky way!
Crazy! Maybe if we all sat and stared a little longer we could be a bit more humble..

i've heard ppl ask about the milky way too. yikes. well said about sitting longer. it's always good to get the bigger picture.

I am sensitive to light pollution. I really love this post. My husband always tells me the best star gazing is in the desert southwest.

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