Sydney's Palm Beach headland named first Urban Dark Sky Place in Southern Hemisphere

[Granada]

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-06-...lace/104032296

Read this on ABC News today. Didn’t know urban dark sky sites were a thing now.

[AdamJL]

That’s awesome. They were campaigning for a while.
I guess it’s good if you don’t look south…

[Crater101 (Warren)]

Good news! Here's to many more.

[sharkbite]

At risk of exposing my ignorance, but what does this actually mean?

Palmie is Bortle 4 according to the light pollution map....
(my backyard is 5)

The folk that certified the "dark sky" status are (as far as i can tell) a not for profit advocacy group based in the united states....

Don't get me wrong, its great that the northern beaches get something, as there is very little else to offer up there ;-).....

....and it does get quite dark on the beach at night....

However, it's not the best place to do astro, especially if the wind is on shore...






Questions:
- how dark does it have to be, in order to be classified as a
'dark' site?

-once classified as a dark site, does the palmie council get a goody sticker?

-does it mean than any extra lighting is banned? (indeed, does this affect any sort of local planning at all?)

- is it possible to lose the certification, on what grounds, and how is this checked?

PS...

from the DSI website:

"Governor Phillip Park is always accessible to visitors. Public access to the Barrenjoey Headland is from sunrise to sunset."

PFFF...

Governor Phillip Park is usually full of cars at night (amorous parking and whatnot) and you can only visit the headland in daylight hours....so....

[AG Hybrid (Adrian)]

Sydney CBD 30KM south, Central coast 25KM north.

"Dark Sky"

If they say so? "Urban Dark Sky" is the definition of an oxymoron.
Bortle 4 according to the sky map is misleading. That would mean its skies are as dark as Katoomba airfield and that is 1000meter above sea level and 80KM as the crow flies from the CBD.

Also, there is a light house on it that's functioning.

I'm sure its still a pretty nice place to visit on a night hike. Do a some nightscape photography or something.

[Wilso]

Sydney has everything

[Leo.G (Leo)]

They haven't figured out how to put LED lights on poles off the coast yet?
As a kid we'd have taken the things out with a sling shot or slug gun and if only I owned a 22 I wouldn't be getting Friday night football lighting in my back yard at night when I pull a telescope out. Can't even slip with a chainsaw, the poles are concrete.
I just leave camera and telescopes inside unless I can get to a friends farm at Hartley.


EDIT:

Governor Phillip Park is usually full of cars at night (amorous parking and whatnot) and you can only visit the headland in daylight hours....so....

Does that mean only armoured vehicles can park there at night?
I've forgotten so much with age, lol.

[By.Jove (Jove)]

Climbed up there at night before via the cliff track off the north end of the dunes (not the public track) it's not particularly dark, and the lighthouse is still operating so forget seeing much.

If I knew of a good dark sky site near Sydney I wouldn't be publicizing it.