Wednesday, March 19, 2008

The Dark Sky Festival

I've never been to the Dark Sky Festival.

This event open to the general public looks awesome!! The goal of the Dark Sky Festival is to encourage people to turn off unneeded artificial outdoor lighting and enjoy the view of the night sky free from "light pollution."

I can remember a few times being out in the country and observing the brilliant beauty of the stars. It is amazing just how clearly they can be seen when one is out away from artificial lighting. At one family reunion, we spent some time at an observatory. Absolutely amazing! I am sure the Dark Sky Festival will be just as amazing, if not more!

There are so many activities available for families to attend. There will be numerous telescopes for folks to look through. There will be presentations by scientists and astronomers, nocturnal animals to meet, a Kids’ Zone, food and music! You can hear speakers talking about “Myths if the Night”, speakers on environmental issues, and hear legendary Motown recording artists Rare Earth.

The festivities will be held April 5 beginning at 7 pm and will last until about 11pm. It will be at Harmony Town Square, Harmony Florida. This night is sure to bring some outta sight fun for all who are able to attend.


That I'd like to see.




Read more about it here:

Get Ready! This Year’s Dark Sky Festival is Out-of-this-World

HARMONY, FL – March 15, 2008 – The 5th Annual Dark Sky Festival at Harmony will be held on Saturday, April 5, 2008. Sponsored by the Harmony Institute, the Kissimmee Convention and Visitors Bureau, several astronomy clubs, the Osceola News Gazette and Florida Travel & Life Magazine, the event will kick off at 7pm in Harmony's Town Square.

“The Dark Sky Festival is intended to celebrate and promote the benefits of a night-sky free from the effects of excessive artificial lighting,” said Greg Golgowski, Harmony’s Conservation Director and a key member of the Dark Sky Festival Planning Committee. “Poor outdoor lighting not only washes out the splendor of the heavens, but also reduces visibility at night, wastes energy, and disturbs wildlife.”

As with the past four Dark Sky Festivals, attendees will be able to enjoy viewing the night skies through a variety of telescopes. There also be lots of music and food, numerous specialty booths, an educational zone with presentations from astronomers and other scientists, nocturnal creatures, a Cosmic Kids Zone and so much more.”

Local favorite, the Silver Clouds Orchestra, will start the entertainment portion of the evening at 7:00pm. This will be followed by a free concert by legendary recording artists, Rare Earth.

Rare Earth will take to Harmony’s outdoor amphitheatre stage at 8:00pm for a live concert chock full of their greatest hits including “Get Ready” and “I Just Want to Celebrate.”

“We are ecstatic to have Rare Earth performing at this year’s Festival,” said Shad Tome, president of Harmony Development Group. “We are encouraging everyone to wear comfortable shoes because Rare Earth is known for getting the whole audience up and dancing.”

The festival will be emceed by Magic 107.7’s afternoon drive on-air personality and program director Ken Payne.

The Festival is open to the general public. Over 3,500 people are expected to attend the event this year. The event will conclude around 11:00pm.

This date was selected because it falls on the heels of National Dark Sky week (March 29 – April 4); where people in the United States are encouraged to turn out their unnecessary outdoor lights in order to temporarily reduce light pollution.

For more information, please visit www.DarkSkyFestival.com or call 407-891-8358.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

That's a benefit of living way out in the country. We do not have any lights anywhere around us here, and on a clear night, the milky way is just brilliant right overhead and it looks so close you could touch it.

silken said...

I am sure it's lovely!!