The Bravo network has just released a 15-minute documentary created in partnership with the Sunshine Coast Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada: Starry Nights. This was directed and produced by Dodie Graham McKay, based in Winnipeg. Dodie co-wrote the film with Charles Ennis, president of the Sunshine Coast chapter of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (RASC), who is the host for the film.
There once was a time when earlier generations could look up at the night sky and observe the cosmos in all its glory. The depth and range of the stars were obvious, far beyond what we can see today. Our ancestors created art, philosophy, religion and culture based on how they perceived their place in the universe. Somewhere along the way we lost this vision, our perspective was blurred and diminished. The constant presence of artificial light, generously and carelessly spilling upwards into the heavens, drowns out the beacons of heavenly light that once guided us. Modern life has detached us from this cosmic inspiration. Electricity has alienated us with the flick of a light switch. Marquees and streetlights have flooded out our original signposts and severed our connection to our place in the cosmos. In quiet corners of Canada, amateur astronomers are turning off the lights and looking to the sky. This documentary takes us to meet one such astronomer and a cast of his colleagues.
Ennis will be our guide, taking us through the eyepieces of the RASC Okanagan observatory, Prince George RASC observatory and the Sunshine Coast Centre observatory to witness the beauty of the starlit skies you cannot see from urban settings.
Starry Nights features astrophotography from RASC observatories and discusses strategies to reverse the damage of artificial light at night and embrace our skies rather than filter them. Throughout the documentary, you see the ghosts of stars that died, the nurseries of stars being born, the other galaxies in our celestial neighbourhood. Travelling from the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia to the Okanagan Valley and on to Prince George, Starry Nights introduces you to the local, small town RASC astronomers, their telescopes and the remarkable discoveries they make in the stars above. You will discover how they give the average person the hands-on experience of our universe in person, beyond the pages of scientific articles in a magazine.
Watch the film on www.youtube.com or www.bravofact.com. For more information, email Ennis at cuhulain@ telus.net or call 778-458-2666.
– Submitted
