A celebration of darkness is being held at a major southern Kentucky tourist attraction.
Mammoth Cave National Park is taking part in International Dark Sky Week 2023.
The goal of the week is to draw attention to the impacts of light pollution, and the beauty of a dark, nighttime, star-filled sky.
Communities across the globe are celebrating this year’s Dark Sky Week April 15-22. Mammoth Cave National Park spokesperson Molly Schroer said they’ll have a number of evening activities planned, including ranger-guided nature walks, talks and opportunities to explore the nighttime sky.
“We’re having a ‘star party’ on April 19, where invite people come up, look through telescopes, and look at some deep space objects to see what’s out there and to see some constellations. We invite people to bring their own telescopes if they’d like to share in that experience.”
Schroer added that being out in nature at night can connect people with a world they didn’t know existed.
“And even for our environment, there’s so many animals that depend on darkness to survive, that it’s important that we have these areas of dark that we can let thrive and be natural. And it’s important for us at Mammoth Cave. We are an International Dark Sky Park. We’ve been recognized as having outstanding starry nights.”
More information can be found at the park’s International Dark Sky Week website. All of the week’s events are free, with no tickets or reservations required.
This story is republished with permission from WKYU. Read the original.
