Bob King – “Why Dark Skies are Good for You”

A highlight of the WICOLA August 4^th Annual Meeting was the star studded presentation by Bob King. Bob shared with the attendees a presentation on all the wonderful things visible in the night sky along with the importance of outdoor lighting that reduces light pollution and its harm to the environment and how everyone can make a difference.

Some of the references Bob provided on this important topic are;

• The International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) is the recognized authority on light pollution and is the leading organization combating light pollution worldwide; http://darksky.org/about/
• Bob also writes a Regular Astronomy Blog that also includes Astronomy and Lighting Links; https://astrobob.areavoices.com/
• The Abrams Planetarium Sky Calendar promotes skywatching for people of all ages. As its name implies, the sheet for each month takes the form of a calendar. Diagrams in the boxes invite the reader to track the moon's rapid motion past the planets and bright stars of the zodiac, as well as to follow the more leisurely pace of the planets in their gatherings with bright stars and other planets. The reverse side consists of a simplified star map of the month's evening sky. The sky maps are designed for use at a convenient time in mid-evening, for a latitude useful for the entire continental U.S. (40 degrees north). The Sky Calendar is published in loose-leaf form and mailed quarterly (Feb-Mar-Apr; May-Jun-Jul; Aug-Sep-Oct; Nov-Dec-Jan). A subscription may start anytime and consists of twelve issues. Sky Calendar prices are $12.00 for a year’s subscription; http://www.abramsplanetarium.org/

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