SANTA CRUZ DE LA PALMA - "Looking at the stars always makes me dream";
it was written in a letter in 1888 by the painter Vincent Van Gogh who, the following year, created one of his masterpieces, "Starry Night".
Observing the stars has always ignited desires and imagination and brings man closer to nature and infinity.
In summer it is even more engaging to observe the magical spectacle of the Perseids, the most beautiful and brightest meteor shower of the year that reaches its peak around 10 August, the night of San Lorenzo.
The shooting stars are in fact called the "
tears of San Lorenzo
"and entice you to turn your eyes to the sky and let yourself be carried away in the rain of stars. In the world there are some perfect places for star watching enthusiasts: they are uncontaminated places, from the desert to the mountains, where there is no air or light pollution and where the celestial vault offers breathtaking spectacles.
In Spain it is the observatory of Roque de los Muchachos, on the island of La Palma, one of the best centers in the world for astronomy and for observing the sky: equipped with giant telescopes, it is the ideal destination to witness the Perseid rain . The observatory overlooks the Caldera de Taburiente, the largest crater in the world, 1,500 meters deep and covered with trees and volcanic rocks in amazing formations. Home to the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, the observatory welcomes scientists from all over the world who use its giant telescopes to peer into the night sky. In fact, in La Palma the stars can also be admired with the naked eye: walking around the island at night they seem so close that you can almost touch them. A 1988 law protects it fromlight pollution and makes it a world reference point for the protection of the sky and the development of sustainable astrotourism. In 2012 the astrophysicist Ana García Suárez founded La Palma Astronomy Tours (lapalmastars.com) which accompanies visitors to the best observation points, organizes astronomy workshops and night photography courses. The tours allow you to reach the giant telescopes of the Roque de los Muchachos observatory and offer various activities, including the "Tapas and Stars" experience which combines tapas tasting with astronomical observation in the incomparable scenery of the San Antonio volcano . For information: starsislandlapalma.esastrophysics Ana García Suárez founded La Palma Astronomy Tours (lapalmastars.com) which accompanies visitors to the best observation points, organizes astronomy workshops and night photography courses. The tours allow you to reach the giant telescopes of the Roque de los Muchachos observatory and offer various activities, including the "Tapas and Stars" experience which combines tapas tasting with astronomical observation in the incomparable scenery of the San Antonio volcano . For information: starsislandlapalma.esastrophysics Ana García Suárez founded La Palma Astronomy Tours (lapalmastars.com) which accompanies visitors to the best observation points, organizes astronomy workshops and night photography courses. The tours allow you to reach the giant telescopes of the Roque de los Muchachos observatory and offer various activities, including the "Tapas and Stars" experience which combines tapas tasting with astronomical observation in the incomparable scenery of the San Antonio volcano . For information: starsislandlapalma.esRoque de los Muchachos observatory and offer various activities, including the "Tapas and Stars" experience which combines tapas tasting with astronomical observation in the incomparable scenery of the San Antonio volcano. For information: starsislandlapalma.esRoque de los Muchachos observatory and offer various activities, including the "Tapas and Stars" experience which combines tapas tasting with astronomical observation in the incomparable scenery of the San Antonio volcano. For information: starsislandlapalma.es
In Northern Ireland there is a place that allows you to admire the brightest stars immersed in a mysterious archaeological site: in the Davagh Forest, within County Tyron, the OM Dark Sky Park and Observatory organizes guided tours with an astronomer to admire the glittering blanket of the night sky. Equipped with cutting-edge technology, the astronomical observatory, which takes its name from the sound of the OM universe, allows you to contemplate the sky at night in an almost perfect way and without the slightest light pollution. With special holographic installations, virtual reality viewers and educational panels you can observe the night sky and explore the solar system. Towards evening, when the retractable roof of the observatory opens,the sophisticated telescope goes into operation capturing images of the lunar surface and distant planets. What makes this experience unforgettable is that under the same starry sky, a few kilometers from the observatory, the mysterious stone circle of the Beaghmore Stone Circles, evidence of the Bronze Age, emerges from the terrain of the Sperrin Mountains. For more information: omdarksky.com
In Italy there are many places suitable for admiring shooting stars; it is enough to climb to the top of a mountain or to move away from the light pollution of the cities to be able to see the vault full of stars. Some places, however, have obtained an official certification of "Dark Sky Park", ie "park of the stars", for the sharpness of the sky and the quality of the air, such as the natural park of Fanes-Sennes-Braies di San Vigilio of Marebbe, where there are vast plateaus and uncontaminated terraces.
In Folgarida, in Val di Sole, the air is so clear that in summer astrotrekking are organized to observe the stars: until 9 September every Thursday, from 20.30 to midnight and a half, we start from the information office and reach the Malga di Dimaro and then take a short walk with a local guide in the woods and pastures of the area to admire the stars at the Albasini refuge, a structure certified among the "most beautiful skies in Italy" by Astronomitaly, the Italian astronomical tourism network. Here the telescopes allow you to observe the sky, the stars and the Milky Way.
The village of Troina, in the province of Enna, is another place certified by the Astronomitaly company, which classifies the best skies in Italy and enhances the places that aim to become destinations of excellence for stargazing and that are committed to the protection and in the enhancement of the heavenly heritage. At a height of 1,100 meters, the Sicilian village offers two locations where to observe the shooting stars: the Ancipa lake and the Sambuchello district, on the Nebrodi mountains.
Valpiana, a small town at an altitude of 1,211 meters near Ossana, in the province of Trento, also received certification for the sharpness of the sky and for the possibility of admiring the stars and the Milky Way. The multi-purpose Chianti observatory, one of the best certified astronomical observatories, is in Barberino Val d'Elsa, in Tuscany, and is the perfect place to admire the firmament in the nature of the Chianti botanical park.
Also awarded with the certification "The most beautiful skies in Italy", the Val d'Ega, in the heart of the South Tyrolean Dolomites, is another privileged place where walks are organized along the paths to observe the stars. The places involved are Collepietra, the small capital of the first star village in Europe, and the localities of Cornedo all'Isarco, Cardano and San Valentino in Campo. Here the South Tyrol Planetarium has been reopened with a rich program that includes night walks to observe the stars, rocket construction workshops for children and families and guided walks on the "path of the planets". For more information: valdega.com and astronomitaly.com