DARK SKIES: This week is International Dark Sky Week, and the International Dark-Sky Association is celebrating.
According to the association, “International Dark Sky Week draws attention to the problems associated with light pollution and promotes simple solutions available to mitigate it.”
There is research suggesting the loss of nighttime darkness has an impact on animals and the environment, as well as on the health of human beings.
People also lose the magic of seeing the outside universe.
“Before the advent of electric light in the 20th century, our ancestors experienced a night sky brimming with stars that inspired science, religion, philosophy, art and literature including some of Shakespeare’s most famous sonnets,” the association stated on its website.
“The common heritage of a natural night sky is rapidly becoming unknown to the newest generations. In fact, millions of children across the globe will never see the Milky Way from their own homes.”
According to the association, Dark Skies Week was created 15 years ago by Jennifer Barlow, a high school student who wanted people to have a chance to see the night sky without light pollution.
Potter County’s own Cherry Springs State Park is a designated International Dark Sky Park — “a land possessing an exceptional or distinguished quality of starry nights and a nocturnal environment that is specifically protected for its scientific, natural, educational, cultural heritage, and/or public enjoyment.”
In fact, Cherry Springs, which received the designation in 2008, is coming upon the 10th anniversary of being a Gold Level Dark Sky Park this summer.
SUPERMAN: Superman has been protecting Metropolis for 80 years.
The Associated Press reports, “On April 18, 1938, Superman, AKA ‘The Man of Steel,’ made his debut as the first issue of Action Comics (bearing a cover date of June) went on sale for 10 cents a copy. (In 2014, a nearly flawless original copy was sold on eBay for $3.2 million.)”
Think about that: The comic book sold for 32 million times what it went for the first time.
