Sark named as world’s first dark sky island

Shunning the 21st century has led the Channel Island of Sark to be designated the world’s first “dark sky island”.

Starry nights are especially glorious on the tiny self-governing island, where there is no public street lighting, no paved roads, and cars are banned.

Sark’s lack of light pollution has now been recognised by the International Dark Sky Association (IDA), which selects locations around the world that deserve “dark sky” status.

This is the first time a “dark sky” award has been granted to an island.

Roger Davies, professor and president of the Royal Astronomical Society, said: “This is a great achievement for Sark. People around the world are become increasingly fascinated by astronomy as we discover more about our universe, and the creation of the world’s first dark sky island in the British Isles can only help to increase that appetite. I hope this leads to many more people experiencing the wonders of a truly dark sky.”

The award followed a long process of community consultation, an assessment of sky darkness, and an audit of all the external lights on Sark.

Many local residents and businesses have altered their lighting to ensure as little light as possible spills upwards where it can drown out starlight.

Strong support for the move came from the government of Sark, the Chief Pleas.

Paul Williams, chairman of the island’s agriculture committee, which oversees environment issues, said: “Sark becoming the world’s first dark sky island is a tremendous feather in our environmental cap, which can only enhance our appeal. Sark is a wonderful island and this recognition will bring our uniqueness and beauty to a wider audience.”

Galloway Forest Dark Sky Park in Scotland became Europe’s first International Dark Sky Park in November 2009.

Steve Owens, who led Sark’s application to the IDA, said: “This is an ideal opportunity to bring stargazers to the island throughout the year, and I think that Sark is about to see a boom in astro-tourism, especially in the winter months.

Members of the public are being urged to count stars this week as part of efforts to measure how light pollution is affecting views of the UK’s night sky.

Details of the number of stars people can see in the constellation of Orion will be used to create a star count map to show the impact of light from towns, cities and roads on dark skies.

A recent survey found that more than four-fifths (83 per cent) of people had their view of the night sky affected by light pollution.