Workshop on “Dark and Quiet Skies for Science and Society”

We invite you to participate in the online workshop “Dark and Quiet Skies for Science and Society”. Organized by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) with support from NSF’s NOIRLab, the workshop will be held 15:00 to 17:00 UTC on 5-9 October 2020. Large portions of the workshop will be recorded for asynchronous viewing and commenting. The workshop will present for discussion the initial findings from the Scientific Organizing Committee’s five Working Groups over a two-hour period each workshop day:

• Monday 5 October: protection of dark sky oases
• Tuesday 6 October: light pollution impact on the bio-environment
• Wednesday 7 October: protection of existing and future astronomical observatories
• Thursday 8 October: impact of satellite constellations
• Friday 9 October: protection of radio astronomy

This workshop, which is organized at the request of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), will be followed by an in-person conference in April 2021, after the workshop report has been presented at the COPUOS Scientific and Technical Sub-Committee (COPUOS STSC) meeting in February 2021. Based on feedback received, the report will be reviewed and finalized after the April Conference, then presented to the June 2021 COPUOS Meeting.

The purpose and scope of the Workshop are to propose to COPUOS STSC a set of recommendations to protect the science of astronomy. If adopted by the United Nations, these recommendations will be presented to local governments for possible action and may become the basis for international agreements. In preparing the Workshop, the Working Groups considered sources of interference that can affect or endanger the visibility of the pristine night sky in all wavelength regimes, and the report identifies measures that will avoid or mitigate negative impacts. Care is being taken to propose recommendations that are both technically and economically feasible and do not affect the main purpose of the potential source of interference, e.g., safety-driven urban illumination, space-based network connectivity, and the like.

To participate in the October workshop, register by 30 September. There is no registration fee. You must register in advance to obtain a link. For more information, visit the workshop webpage or contact Constance Walker (cwalker@noao.edu).