You rarely see a sea of lights made up of countless stars in the night sky. Because in many cities and municipalities it is much too bright even at night. It is different on Spiekeroog and Pellworm.
Spiekeroog / Pellworm (dpa) – Anyone who walks at night on the North Frisian island of Pellworm should have a flashlight with them.
“It belongs in the standard baggage,” says Tourism Director Sarah Michna. Because it is very dark at night on Pellworm. The situation is similar on the East Frisian island of Spiekeroog. Here, too, it is zappenduster after dark. Both islands want to use this and have the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) register themselves as recognized star parks. Pellworm is hoping for IDA recognition in late summer, and Spiekeroog is also optimistic that it will work in the next few months.
Against light pollution
“Both Pellworm and Spiekeroog are among the darkest places in Germany and are therefore ideal areas for star parks. It’s great that both islands are taking this route and are trying to do something about light pollution, ”says the Osnabrück astronomer Andreas Hänel.
The star park award is only given to areas that have a natural night landscape and are committed to its preservation. This is linked to the promise to reduce environmental pollution from light pollution and to contribute to the health of all living beings and to save energy.
So far there are four recognized star parks in Germany: the Westhavelland Nature Park, the Rhön Biosphere Reserve, the Eifel National Park, the Winklmoosalm in Bavaria and – as the first star city – Fulda. In addition to Spiekeroog and Pellworm, other places are trying to gain recognition. In Germany, the IDA is represented by the Dark Sky specialist group of the Association of Star Friends.
The dark sky over Spiekeroog
Hänel is the head of this specialist group and advises the two islands on their way to the certificate. Hänel remembers his first darkness measurements on Spiekeroog in April 2019. “I just didn’t trust my readings because I had never measured such a dark sky before,” reports Hänel. He has already made hundreds of measurements all over the world. The first measurements on Pellworm were also excellent, recalls Michna.
However, there are many light sources around Spiekeroog that influence the night sky, says Hänel. The JadeWeserPort and Wilhelmshaven form a clear bell of light in the southeast. In addition, there are numerous illuminated wind turbines on the North Sea and ships that are on the busy shipping route in the German Bight. It looks different on Pellworm: “On Pellworm, the immediate surroundings are less disturbing,” says Hänel. The only thing that can be seen dominantly in the dark is a bell of light over a refinery near Heide in the south.
The stars shine above Pellworm
Oliver Jedath from the star island Pellworm project group takes his visitors to the Nordermühle on an evening in May. Now it’s time to wait. Even an hour after sunset there is still too much residual light in the sky. In summer you have to stay up late to see the stars. Finally, more and more stars can only be guessed at first, then seen. It lights up from a stable window some distance away, and a motion detector goes on at the mill. Otherwise there is now almost complete darkness, not even the moon can be seen. However, a few veils make it difficult to see the stars. Then around midnight it clears up. Countless stars appear in the night sky.
The Pellworm tourism experts want to use this night sky to make the low season more attractive for visitors. As a star island, you would have a pound to upgrade the off-season, says Michna. Observation places and other offers for stargazers are to be created gradually. “We have a lot of ideas,” says Jedath.
For Spiekeroog, too, certification as a star park would be a tourist upgrade that fits the island, says Mayor Matthias Piszczan (CDU). Spiekeroog is known as the “green island”. “The guests come to us to deal with nature. A star park would be a suitable addition, ”he said recently. The island is currently working on creating two adventure locations for stargazers together with the Wittbülten National Park Center.
The star parks on Pellworm and Spiekeroog could also create awareness of the problem of light pollution: “Of course we also see great potential in the many guests who come to the islands. They can be shown how to see beautifully glowing constellations with adapted lighting, ”says the astronomer Hänel. “We hope that the tourists will take this knowledge home with them and perhaps give them ideas to change something in their private lives or in their community.”
The less artificial light illuminates the night, the better the view of the starry sky. And less light pollution has other advantages, says Pellworm’s head of tourism, Michna: Less nocturnal lighting is good for health and protects insects that are attracted by artificial light sources.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210531-99-803755 / 3
International Dark-Sky Association
Star parks map
Information about the planned star island Pellworm
Information about the planned Mandø Star Park (Danish)
Light pollution is on the wadden agenda
Leeuwarden Convention on Light Pollution in the Wadden Sea, p. 90
