The Dark Sky Festival

I live out in the middle of nowhere, right at the line where North becomes South and East Becomes West in the United States, and there’s really nothing out here. Because of that, I get to see the stars a lot which is something I suppose I take for granted – although, I know me too well, I’d likely trade it all for public transportation and the chance to get a decent job, lol.

But if you don’t get a chance to see the stars, you may want to check out the Dark Sky Festival in Florida. The concept behind the Dark Sky Festival is to introduce people to the beauty of an entirely artificial light free night sky, and some of what I’d read on their website suggests a want of creating awareness for the excess wasted light used every day. This includes speakers on light pollution.

While I don’t agree with the concept of light pollution, partially because I live in a place where it’s just not an issue so I don’t really think about it, I do believe that excessive use of artificial light is a waste of energy, and the more we waste the more we have to produce and, like fossil fuels, this does damage the earth.

On a lighter note, they’ll have a kids zone with many speakers, including a little Myths in the Night for those of you who are intrigued by that kind of thing, telescopes for celestial viewing and Rare Earth, a Motown artist. If you’d like to find out more, check out the press release:

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.

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