"In the days leading up to the winter solstice, amber streetlights switch on ever earlier as dusk falls over Flagstaff, Ariz., casting the city in a soft, warm hue. Longer nights mean even more time to spend under hundreds of stars and the cloudy swath of the Milky Way galaxy, which are visible even from the city's downtown. Spectacular views of the night sky are a given for the more than 77,000 residents of the world's first and largest dark sky city,"
"its high elevation and dry air attracted Percival Lowell, an astronomer searching for darkness away from the light-polluted skies of Boston. In 1894, he opened Lowell Observatory on a hill west of the city as he searched for life on Mars. Researchers still use the observatory, which attracts more than 100,000 annual visitors. Every night, those visitors can settle in the heated seats of an open planetarium as they take in the real night sky above, rather than staring at a domed screen."
Flagstaff, Arizona, offers prolonged winter solstice darkness with visible Milky Way from downtown, serving over 77,000 residents. The city earned Dark Sky Place of the Year for decades-long commitment to preserving night through intentional lighting design, legal enforcement, and community stewardship. Lowell Observatory, founded by Percival Lowell in 1894, attracted astronomers with high elevation and dry air and remains active, drawing over 100,000 visitors yearly. Visitors observe the real night sky from heated planetarium seats, glow-stone pathways, and outdoor telescopes. Local groups and astronomers influenced a 1958 lighting ordinance to protect sky darkness for research and public viewing.
Read at www.nytimes.com
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