Do you like to look up at the sky? Do you sometimes wonder at the vastness of the universe? Do you wish you could see a truly dark starry night? If your answer is ‘yes’, you must visit the Starry-Sky Park in the Bieszczady Mountains. This is a perfect place for stargazing. You will never forget this experience.
People have always loved looking up at the stars, and have been fascinated by the distant galaxies. Unfortunately, most of us today have never seen a truly dark night sky and many of us do not know that there are still places where we can admire the Milky Way without using a telescope. One of such places is the Starry-Sky Park. It comprises an area of almost 114,000 hectares, including the Bieszczady National Park as well as the Ciśniańsko-Wetliński and the San River Valley Landscape Reserves. It is the second largest dark-sky preserve in Europe, preceded only by the Brecon Beacons International Dark Sky Reserve in the UK.
The park is located within one of the wildest and most beautiful areas of Poland, far from busy roads, cities, towns or even villages producing light pollution. Here, with the wide open vistas, in the silence and darkness of the night you can truly enjoy and appreciate the grand spectacle in the sky.
You will fall in love with the stars
The Starry-Sky Park hosts astro-shows which present the Milky Way, the planets and the Moon. The shows take place on every clear night. The detailed schedule of the events, based on the weather forecasts, is available on the website of the Park. Each show includes an introductory multimedia presentation and, most importantly, real-time observations of the sky. The instructors present the positions of constellations in the sky and explain how they can be recognised.
Participants of the Starry-Sky shows can observe nebulae, galaxies and star clusters, artificial satellites orbiting round the Earth, as well as the shooting stars and the Perseids, in August. They can also use telescopes to explore the Silver Globe and the craters on its surface, Saturn with its rings as well as Jupiter with its moons and visible clouds in its atmosphere.
In the Bieszczady Mountains you can admire the Milky Way with the naked eye! You do not need any special equipment. To get an even better view of the planets and stars you can use a telescope or binoculars. You can also receive help during the observations from instructors with expertise in astronomy. You should remember to have warm clothes, as the observations of the sky are conducted outdoors, obviously. It is also a good idea to book accommodation – there are lots of options in the Bieszczady Mountains so everyone will find a place which is perfect for them.
The Starry-Sky Park hosts astro-shows which present the Milky Way, the planets and the Moon. The shows take place on every clear night. You can find the detailed schedule of the events, based on the weather forecasts, on the website of the Park www.gwiezdnebieszczady.pl. Each show includes an introductory multimedia presentation and, most importantly, real-time observations of the sky. The instructors present the positions of constellations in the sky and explain how they can be recognised.
Participants of the Starry-Sky shows can observe nebulae, galaxies and star clusters, artificial satellites orbiting round the Earth, as well as the shooting stars and the Perseids, in August. They can also use telescopes to explore the Silver Globe and the craters on its surface, Saturn with its rings as well as Jupiter with its moons and visible clouds in its atmosphere.
A visit to the Starry-Sky Park in the Bieszczady is a truly inspiring experience. In this beautiful natural setting you will enjoy the quiet time and the silence and you will fall in love with the stars!