The dark sky over an urban park in central Mexico attracts stargazers who worry it might not last

JOYA-LA BARRETA ECOLOGICAL PARK, Mexico -- As nighttime descended, a rumble of frogs filled nan aerial successful this parkland extracurricular nan cardinal Mexican metropolis of Queretaro. In nan sky, mini stars appeared 1 by one, aligning into constellations.

Juan Carlos Hernández utilized his weight to set a ample telescope. “Aim for me, Rich!” he yelled to his friend. Ricardo Soriano focused a greenish laser connected a mini spot of clouds, targeting where nan Tsuchinshan-Atlas comet will soon beryllium visible.

Hernández and different amateur astronomers worked to certify Joya-La Barreta Ecological Park past twelvemonth arsenic nan first municipality nighttime entity space successful Latin America by DarkSky International, an statement moving to amended nan nationalist astir nan harm of indiscriminate lighting.

The parkland sitting astatine astir 8,520 feet (2,600 meters) supra oversea level connected nan outskirts of Queretaro gives unobstructed entree to nan nighttime sky. While complete 200 acheronian entity places beryllium globally, Joya-La Barreta parkland is only 1 of 11 successful areas that are considered urban. Its acheronian entity position is nether changeless threat, however, from expanding ray contamination and urbanization.

Hernández, who conscionable turned 40, has advocated relentlessly for nan nighttime entity for much than 20 years.

The president of Queretaro’s Astronomical Society and 1 of nan founders of nan stargazing tourism agency Astronite, nan aerospace technologist by time has been chasing acheronian areas to observe nan stars since he tin remember.

“In 2014 you could spot Omega (Centauri) sitting successful nan entity conscionable supra nan city,” he said of a constellation complete 17,000 ray years away. “Today it’s unimaginable.”

A 2023 study that analyzed information from much than 50,000 amateur stargazers recovered that artificial lighting is making nan nighttime entity crossed nan world astir 10% brighter each year. As of 2016, much than 80% of nan world lived nether light-polluted skies.

Studies successful Mexico show that accrued urbanization and nan request for metropolis lighting successful narration to information issues person caused much ray contamination.

Fernando Ávila Castro of nan Institute of Astronomy astatine nan National Autonomous University of Mexico said a bully affinity to explicate ray contamination is sound pollution.

“We perpetually perceive postulation sound from nan street, but past a definite level that strength becomes annoying, it doesn’t fto you rest,” he said. “The aforesaid point happens pinch light. Especially because each surviving beings person this soul clock, nan circadian rhythm, which depends connected nan outer values of light.”

“When we spell to sleep, we hide that an full world remains active,” Castro said.

The satellite and stars are nan ray root guiding nocturnal activity for plants and animals — determining erstwhile animals look from hiding to find food, erstwhile plants reproduce and erstwhile definite animal type migrate. Artificial ray has boomed since nan business gyration successful nan 19th century, pinch efficient, affordable LEDs nan latest type successful wide use.

“There’s besides this full portion astir nan biodiversity,” Analette Casazza, president of different Queretaro astronomy association, said while opinionated nether nan stars Saturday night. “We tin perceive nan singing from each nan animals that unrecorded present (in Joya-La Barreta). A batch of these pollinating animals, their activity is astatine night.”

Joya-La Barreta parkland hosts 123 type of vertebrates.

“The existent situation we person is to get citizens involved,” said María Guadalupe Espinosa de los Reyes Ayala, Queretaro's situation secretary. “When group get astatine a spot for illustration this and recognize really overmuch it has to offer, they spot nan request to protect and conserve it.”

Hernández and different astronomy activists proceed to conflict to conserve nan park’s nocturnal conditions and walk authorities regulations to trim ray pollution.

Hernández is besides fighting for nan enforcement of Mexico’s General Law of Ecological Balance, passed successful 2021.

The rule provides wide recommendations to minimize ray pollution. It’s been recognized successful definite Mexican states for illustration Sonora, Baja California and Hidalgo to protect observatories and master astronomical observations. However successful Queretaro, Hernández submitted an amendment to nan authorities legislature successful 2023 to use nan regulations, but hasn’t had immoderate luck.

Three times a year, nan national astronomers astatine Joya-La Barreta person to taxable ray contamination reports to DarkSky. Increased ray contamination levels aliases a deficiency of visitors to nan parkland for astronomical activities tin put their certification astatine risk. For Ricardo Soriano, different laminitis of Astronite, it’s a changeless origin for concern.

“If contamination continues to turn and nan authorities doesn’t support us, and doesn’t do much to spot much beyond our certification, past we tin suffer it,” Soriano said. “We’ll person to time off Queretaro to effort to find different parkland for illustration this. I dream they tin spot it arsenic thing important for nan authorities and community.”

On Saturday, arsenic nan comet came into focus, 10-year-old Matti González, accompanied by his parents Antonio González and Brenda Estrella, burst into a grin looking done his telescope.

“What are you going to dress up arsenic for Halloween?” González asked his son. “An astronaut!” Matti yelled.

Throughout nan night, Hernandez ran backmost and distant betwixt attendees pinch a reddish headlight guiding his path. He explained definite celestial bodies aliases helped attraction a scope connected Saturn’s rings. Pausing for a moment, he thought astir Carl Sagan, and really nan astronomer said nan aforesaid elements that shape successful nan last gasps of a dying prima — hydrogen, oxygen, c — are elements recovered successful our bodies today.

“Looking astatine nan entity is nan astir belief acquisition location tin be,” Hernández said excitedly. “It’s nan relationship to our existent molecular origins, but besides to our cosmic destiny.”

Looking up astatine nan stars, he said: “For me, nan astir important point is that nan early generations cognize that a assets their grandparents had is being lost.”

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