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skyandtelescope.com • JUNE 2019 59

Glacier International Peace Park in 1932. In 2017, the joint

park received a provisional Gold Tier designation from the

International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) as the fi rst trans-

boundary International Dark Sky Park, and it’s well on its

way to complying with the requirements.

“We have until 2020 to get our lighting to 67% IDA

compliance,” explains Mark Biel, Natural Resources Program

Manager for Glacier National Park. “We are anticipating

meeting, and exceeding, the 67% compliance requirement

by the end of 2019 if anticipated funding is received and

employees can be hired to install the lighting.”

Dark skies are an increasingly precious resource, but they

weren’t priorities until recently.

“No National Park, yet, has ever been set aside for the

dark skies,” says Mark Wagner, retired Interpreter for the

Hudson Bay District in Glacier, as well as one of the found-

GOING-TO-THE-SUN AURORA Headlights and

taillights outline Glacier’s historic Going-to-the-

Sun Road as the Big Dipper rises above the

northern lights. This 180º east-to-west panorama,

composed of 18 images taken between midnight

and 1 a.m., includes (left to right) McDonald

Creek, the Loop, Oberlin Bend, and the Logan

Pass Visitor Center.

S

tunning” and “breathtaking” fall short as descriptors

when talking about the majesty of towering mountains

and sweeping vistas in Montana’s Glacier National

Park. But as gorgeous as the daylight hours are, Glacier truly

shines at night. Mountain peaks frame the view of the north-

ern lights or the Milky Way, and the surrounding silence,

without the din of human existence, makes every night feel

like a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Going to Dark Places

It’s a given that viewing the night sky without extraneous

light enhances the experience, and, fortunately, Glacier and

its sister park, Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta,

Canada, are doing their best to protect this resource for

future generations. Though administered separately, the two

parks were brought together under the moniker Waterton-

“

Seeing Stars

The fi rst cross-border

International Dark Sky Park

offers everything a stargazer

needs for a fulfi lling night

under the stars.

×n Glacier

WATERTON-

GLACIER

INTERNATIONAL

PEACE PARK