It was wonderful to see so many people at the Dark Skies talk in the village hall on Tuesday evening. 65 people came, and kindly gave £163.33 (plus 5 Euros and a blue Tescos token!) in aid of Somerset Wildlife Trust.
For those interested in learning more about some of the subjects that were touched on, you may find these links helpful:
An Astronomer’s Guide to Exmoor National Park International Dark Sky Reserve (PDF) explains why Exmoor is so great for astronomy and details the top five recommended observation sites, which include the Dunkery Beacon car park. This site scores 2 on the Bortle Scale, which ranges from Class 1, the darkest skies available on Earth, through to Class 9, inner-city skies. So we are very fortunate to have this exceptional stargazing site literally on our doorstep.
The Exmoor page on the DarkSky International website, from where you can access the Exmoor Dark Skies Annual Reports and even all the sky quality data that was mentioned.
The zoomable CPRE interactive light pollution map
Exmoor National Park Guidance for dark sky friendly lighting (PDF). Includes examples of good and bad light fittings for outdoors.
DarkSky International offers information on how the brightening night sky links directly to measurable negative impacts on:
Wildlife and ecosystems
Human health
Energy and climate change
Crime and safety
Night sky heritage
James Macbeth
Wootton Courtenay 