“My God, it’s full of stars.”
Those are the last words astronaut David Bowman speaks in the book version of 2001: A Space Odyssey. They could also have described my reaction as I gazed up at the night sky over Yosemite National Park about 12 years ago.
Seemingly thousands of illuminated pinholes glowed against the near-black firmament above. I couldn't recall having seen so many stars. I certainly haven't seen that many since.
At the time, I may have attributed the amazing sight to being out West, as if star-filled skies naturally corresponded to wide-open plains. But I soon learned the more rational explanation: Yosemite is far enough away from city lights that its sky is quite dark — hence more stars are visible.
With the naked eye, and under ideal conditions, we have the potential to see about 2,500 stars at any one time. But that number goes down as the amount of light pollution — the adverse effect of artificial light — increases.
According to a NASA report, the night sky can be 30 times brighter over larger cities than it is in areas without light pollution. More light pollution means fewer visible stars. And in numerous nighttime satellite images, the Tampa Bay region blazes white.
So where can Bay area residents go locally to enjoy nature's nightly celestial show? After looking at those satellite maps, convenient vantage points seem few and far between.
"It's hard to find good, dark sky," says Dennis Farr, president of the St. Petersburg Astronomy Club — unless
you're willing to go outside the city, which is what SPAC members sometimes do when they want to study the heavens above.
Farr says that Lithia's Alafia River State Park, which is roughly 30 miles southeast of downtown Tampa, is good for observing the southern sky, while Withlacoochee River Park near Dade City is amenable to northern sky stargazing. Although both parks close at sundown, you can get into Alafia for a $3 fee if you call ahead; there's no charge to get into Withlacoochee if you camp without using electricity.
But if you're not inclined to travel beyond the Bay area for your nocturnal activities, there are other options.
"You can do a lot of study in the city," Farr says, noting that light pollution doesn't adversely affect viewing larger objects in the sky, such as planets, the moon, galaxies, double stars (which are gravitationally bound together) and planetary nebulae (dying stars).
"Saturn is up beautiful right now, in the eastern sky when the sun sets," Farr says. "It takes your breath away when seen through a telescope. Venus is real bright and low in the western sky."
Sure enough, when I take a walk with my wife and son to the end of our street and gaze west over Boca Ciega Bay, a bright object I assume to be Venus is right where Farr had said it would be, a bright, lovely luminescence hanging in the sky.
And because there are no streetlights on my block, I can also get in some decent stargazing.
When I recently looked up into the clear sky above my home in St. Petersburg's Parque Narvaez neighborhood at 10 p.m., I counted roughly 100 stars. Most of those were directly above me (near the zenith, as astronomers call it). Stars became scarcer as my eyes dipped toward the horizon, and the sky's dark hue was encroached upon by the pale pink glow of man-made light.
The night I stood at the edge of the bay, I noticed that the sky above Madeira Beach lacked that garish blush.
For stargazing in the city, Farr says that the beaches "have a fairly decent western sky."
On a recent night at the Madeira Beach access just south of the Tom Stuart Causeway, the sky afforded a clear view of a number of stars, including the one constellation I can readily identify, Orion the Hunter. Most of the stars hovered just west of the zenith, including a few lower objects that wouldn't have been visible through city obstructions such as buildings, trees (as in my neighborhood) and streetlights.
If you want not just a clear but a closer view of the heavens, SPAC sometimes hosts public viewing events. Members set up their telescopes (weather permitting) on Beach Boulevard for the public during Gulfport's gallery walks, which are held the first Friday and third Saturday of each month. Be sure to also check out the calendar on the SPAC website, where similar public viewings are listed.
But whether seen through a telescope or with the naked eye, the night sky is home to a free display worthy of appreciation. All you have to do is look up.
More astronomy-related information provided by the St. Petersburg Astronomy Club can be found at stpeteastronomyclub.org. You'll find upcoming events and tips on what to look for in the sky.
Urban Explorer's Handbook 2007
Sensory Overload Edition
Click here for the other senses
Sight
This article appears in Mar 21-27, 2007.