Airports are rarely associated with stargazing. But Jackson Hole Airport in Wyoming, USA, has changed that perception: it has become the world’s first airport to receive International Dark Sky Place status.
This designation is given to places where light pollution has been minimized and the natural darkness of the night sky has been preserved. There are now about 260 such places worldwide. Most of them are wilderness areas and remote territories, slightly fewer are small towns, and only a handful are complex infrastructure sites.
At the airport, around 300 light fixtures were upgraded, motion sensors and brightness-control systems were installed. At night, parking lot lighting is reduced to 30% of full power and increased when needed. Warm-spectrum lamps and shields that reduce light spill are used. As a result, a starry sky and the Milky Way are already visible near the airport. At the same time, all aviation safety requirements have been fully met.
Excessive nighttime light is not just an aesthetic issue, but an intrusion into the natural rhythms of life. Many animals navigate in the dark, and bright lighting literally throws off their internal clocks. Birds lose their direction during migration, insects die after being drawn to lamps, and this in turn disrupts food chains. Even plants respond to artificial light, changing their growth and flowering cycles. In the end, night stops being night — and the ecosystem begins to function with errors. That is why dark sky areas help nature live in its natural rhythm without unnecessary interference.
