Dark Skies Awareness will focus on three main programs to measure local levels of light pollution. These programs will take the form of "star hunts" or "star counts", providing people with a fun and direct way to acquire heightened awareness about light pollution through firsthand observations of the night sky. Together the three programs will cover the entire International Year of Astronomy 2009, namely GLOBE at Night (in March), the Great World Wide Star Count (in October) and How Many Stars (January, February, April through September, November and December.

The Sidewalk Astronomers will be holding events at several National Parks for visitors to experience dark skies and will take part in all the star counts. We are just moving forward on this project, so be sure to check back often as we get more details.

 You can check the Dark Skies Awareness Cornerstone Project page for more information: www.darkskiesawareness.org and also GLOBE at Nght at http://www.globe.gov/GaN/ 

Sidewalk Astronomers should get very involved in this project, it is the perfect fit for what we do on a regular basis. Get your scopes out during the star counts, take photos to show those in the city what the sky should look like without all the light pollution, hold events in darker national, state, and local parks. We are out there speaking with the public about astronomy all the time - we need to remember to speak up to everyone about the need for darker skies!

What are you doing or plan to do in the coming years regarding dark skies? Let us know your ideas about how we can add to this project.