1. Why should the dark sky in Poland be protected ?
- because it’s a natural good, just like the native fauna and flora,
- bright sky makes it impossible to watch the stars,
- sky observations in Poland have a historic background (Copernicus),
- astronomy is a future science, that should be developed in Poland,
- proper lighting increases the comfort of travelling at night,
- properly designed lighting systems bring great savings !
2. What are the main problems with artificial lighting in Poland ?
- open street lamps with the light pointing upwards and sideways instead of only downwards,
Chorzów, 22 October 2006
II Congress of Astronomical Organizations
Ministry of
Internal Affairs
and Administration,
Ministry of Cultural and National Heritage,
MOŚiGW
Dear Sir/Madam,
The undersigned representatives of Polish astronomical societies, non-governmental organizations of the Third Sector, state institutions, schools and university departments, students, professional astronomers, employees and owners of trade companies, publishing houses, theme circles and other legal and private entities, would like to make an appeal to the State Authorities of the Republic of Poland to consider a problem concerning the loss of a particularly important element of Polish national heritage: the dark sky in Poland.
The issue has been particularly important for dark sky and fauna observers, whose increasingly worrying information appear on different Internet forums, in specialist magazines, theme organizations, during various scientific events etc.