4 ms·
> The view of the night sky is stunning. You can see the Milky Way with the naked eye, and the sheer number of stars is magnificent Note that you can see the M
by vog 9y ago
> The view of the night sky is stunning. You can see the Milky Way with the naked eye, and the sheer number of stars is magnificent
Note that you can see the Milky Way with naked eyes also outside of reservates. Maybe most people forget this when living in a city, but all you need for a stunning sky view is to go to the next grassland on the countryside around your city. (And you need non-cloudy weather, of course.)
It might not be as perfect as in the preservates, but compared to what you see within a city, it is a huge difference. You see at least 10 times as many stars. And of course you see the Milky Way clearly.
(But beware that a beginner might mistake large, thin clouds for the Milky Way. Also, note that beginners might be confused by the sheer amount of stars, being unable to identify even basic star signs. The trick here is to visit the grassland on sunset, then wait for the dusk, and watch as more and more stars appear on the sky. The first seen (i.e. brightest) stars are usually easy to identify, then you see the brighter star signs, and finally have enough orientation to recognize the rest of the sky as it appears.)
- dotancohen 9y agoI second the 'get to the observation point before sundown' advice. In some really dark places, there are so many stars that I even have a hard time picking out bright stars like Vega or easy constellations such as Cygnus, Orion, or the Big Dipper. Watching the stars come out makes this much easier, and as a bonus the planets really awe at dusk.
- katzgrau 9y agoYep, as long as you're remote enough you can get a truly fascinating view. Last summer I camped in Zion National Park and it was the first time I've seen the night sky with such clarity. I couldn't look away - I laid outside of the tent and just stared for hours. The fact that we're in the midst of a big explosion is quite striking.
- jriot 9y agoAlso to note, make sure you go when it is a New Moon i.e., no moon in the sky.