GFCA Town Hall Meeting - Dark Skies

This monthly community meeting (for residents of Great Falls, both GFCA members and non-members) is generally held on the 2nd Tuesday of each month.  

This month:  Dark Skies Program

Speakers will discuss Great Fall's long-standing policy to keep our skies as dark as possible so residents and students can observe the planets, stars and constellations which are often difficult to see elsewhere in the metro area.

• Bob Parks is the Executive Director of Smart Outdoor Lighting Alliance, a non-profit assisting cities in their transition to energy and ecologically responsible public lighting using advance controls and technology. He is the former Executive Director of the International Dark-Sky Association and the Virginia Outdoor Lighting Taskforce. He will discuss new lighting technology that can reduce energy, costs and lighting pollution while protecting the nocturnal environment and ensuring safe neighborhoods. He will also discuss shortcomings in the current Fairfax County lighting ordinance.
  
• Tammy Schwab is the Fairfax County Park Authority’s Manager of Education & Outreach in the Resource Management Division. The Park Authority administers several local parks, including Turner Farm, which has focus on astronomy because of the unusual dark skies in Great Falls. Ms. Schwab will demonstrate how light pollution affects observation of stars and planets and will discuss ways in which the Park Authority is reducing its lighting pollution.
  
• Charles Olin is the founder and president of the Great Falls-based Analemma Society, which raises awareness and understanding of science through astronomy for children and adults. Its Observatory Park facility at the Turner Farm is being expanded to increase programs of observation, measurement, calculation, and interpretation of astronomy in conjunction with local educational institutions. Mr. Olin will discuss the benefits of dark sky in terms of what it allows one to see and will discuss Analemma Society’s plans to advance science education of children K-12 and the general public through astronomy.