DaveV Posted September 13, 2021 Share Posted September 13, 2021 Hoping for some advice. I want to show a 7th grader some really dark night skies. Ideally I envision laying on the ground and looking up and taking it all in. He has never seen a truly dark sky. I want him to see the milky way. And see satellites moving. And then bring out my scope and maybe we see a planet. And see Andromeda. I live in northern NJ, 12 miles from NYC. Viewing is quite bad in this suburban/Metro area. Can you recommend any specific places maybe up to an hour and a half away, that we could go to on a clear night and see a dark sky (sufficiently dark to see the Milky Way!). Also, with the West Coast fires that mess up terrestrial viewing (even on a clear day, looking at NYC that is 12 miles away - it looks like there is a fog) are the fires messing up night sky viewing? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstronomyUkraine Posted September 13, 2021 Share Posted September 13, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, DaveV said: Hoping for some advice. I want to show a 7th grader some really dark night skies. Ideally I envision laying on the ground and looking up and taking it all in. He has never seen a truly dark sky. I want him to see the milky way. And see satellites moving. And then bring out my scope and maybe we see a planet. And see Andromeda. I live in northern NJ, 12 miles from NYC. Viewing is quite bad in this suburban/Metro area. Can you recommend any specific places maybe up to an hour and a half away, that we could go to on a clear night and see a dark sky (sufficiently dark to see the Milky Way!). Also, with the West Coast fires that mess up terrestrial viewing (even on a clear day, looking at NYC that is 12 miles away - it looks like there is a fog) are the fires messing up night sky viewing? Thanks! This website will help you find a dark site, but the East coast looks to be very light polluted, except for a place called Wharton State Forest in New Jersey. It looks to be very dark there. https://www.lightpollutionmap.info/#zoom=8.01&lat=39.5280&lon=-73.8307&layers=B0FFFFFTFFFFFFFFFFF Also you could contact these guys. It's the website of the New Jersey Astronomical Association. http://www.njaa.org/ Edited September 13, 2021 by AstronomyUkraine 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nightspore Posted September 14, 2021 Share Posted September 14, 2021 You'd probably be better off contacting a local New Jersey astronomy club as this is technically a UK based site. Astronomy Clubs in NJ Good luck. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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