June 2022. Councillors Osborne and Stone attended a Forest of Bowland AONB on-line presentation by local astronomer Robert Ince.
Truly dark skies are increasingly rare in England; light pollution is creeping into almost every corner, diluting the pitch blackness of night and obscuring the stars for much of the population. Though far from being unaffected, Bowland does have places where the pollution is relatively low-level, and there is a good chance of being able to marvel at such wonders as our own galaxy, the Milky Way. Some of these spots are designated Dark Sky Discovery Sites.
Though a good deal of the light pollution comes from around the periphery of the area, efforts are made to encourage Bowland residents and businesses to minimise the amount of light escaping from their premises, and the AONB publishes guidance for Keeping Bowland in the Dark.
For general information about star-gazing in Bowland, and Dark Sky Discovery Sites, click here. You can also watch a recording of Robert Ince’s presentation here.