She is standing in Exmoor national park talking about Saturn, the first planet she ever saw through a telescope. But it is not the cosmic colour of the planet that Richardson is drawn to, nor its mysteries – it is the vastness. That’s just nuts.” Richardson is on Exmoor to spread the word.
She is here for the 10th dark skies festival, celebrating the park as Europe’s first designated international dark skies reserve. Throughout October, people travelled from across England’s south-west to see the wonder of the night sky and learn about space, guided by astronomers and ecologists from the national park. Bringing people to the darkness of Exmoor encourages them to consider the light pollution that prevents them seeing the cosmic show at home, Richardson says.
Together, the pair run Space Detectives, which delivers space science workshops, presentations and courses for adults and children. Research has shown that the night sky becomes 10% brighter every year because of growing light pollution. According to the Light Pollution Map, the UK is the 14th most light-polluted country in Europe, with microstates such as Vatican City and Monaco making up the top five.
Light pollution is measured by the Bortle scale, the nine-level numeric chart that measures brightness. A nine is lit up like central London, while a one is the remotest locations on Earth such as the Atacama desert in Chile. The darkest zone of Exmoor is a two.
It’s quite incredible.” The darkness is also important for the local wildlife, says Kate Lacey, an ecologist at Exmoor National Park Authority. Her work focuses on protecting the park’s nocturnal environment, including the rare bechstein’s and barbastelle bats that live on Exmoor. They rely on darkness for hunting, navigation and migration.
Protecting salmon populations is also on her to-do list. It confuses them, and then they’re less likely to survive.” As the night goes on, clouds blanket Exmoor’s sky, obscuring the stars and bringing the event to a close. But the organisers hope the experience will stay with visitors long after they leave.
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