THE BIGGEST starlight survey in the UK is happeneing this weekend as people across the North East are urged to take part.
Star Count 2022 is giving everyone the chance to become ‘citizen scientists’ by counting the number of stars they can see with the naked eye inside the rectangular constellation of Orion.
Results from across the country will be tallied to produce a comprehensive map of England’s night skies, finding out where the darkest areas are and which suffer most from light pollution.
Organised annually by CPRE, (formerly the Campaign to Protect Rural England), in association with the British Astronomical Association, the Star Count this year runs from this Saturday, February 26 to Sunday March 6.
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Although there is interest in the North East’s profoundly dark skies in Northumberland, the north Pennines and rural areas of County Durham, statisticians are equally interested in the views from our cities and towns.
As well as promoting dark skies and engaging people in the wonders of stargazing, CPRE aims to assess light pollution across the whole of England.
They hope the survey will particularly catch the imagination of the young.
Richard Cowen, chair of CPRE North East, said: “It would be great to see families using this as a way to study the skies together.
“How many stars you will see ultimately depends upon the level of light pollution in your area, but by counting stars and mapping our dark skies together, we can fight back against light pollution and reclaim the night sky.”
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Using information gathered from the Start Count, CPRE plans to work with local and national Government to ensure appropriate lighting is used only where it’s needed, helping to reduce carbon emissions, save money, and protect and enhance our dark skies.
Light pollution is blotting out the stars and obstructing our ability to connect with nature and during the Covid lockdowns we saw clearer, darker skies however, experts fear it was a temporary reprieve.
Last year, the proportion of people reporting ‘severe light pollution', defined as 10 stars or fewer being visible to the naked eye in the Orion constellation, had declined from 61 per cent to 51 per cent.
The proportion of ‘truly dark skies’, defined as over 30 stars being visible within the Orion constellation, had increased from 3 per cent to 5 per cent.
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