See the Night Sky in a Whole New Light

Rhode Island Monthly – By Mary Grady Published: 2014.11.17 09:49 AM

This season brings rewards for astronomers – not just more hours to explore the night sky, but also the chance to glimpse the eerie, elusive glow know as the Zodiacal light.

Every year at this time, the descent of darkness still takes us by surprise – suddenly, the clocks turn back, and the stars are out before dinner. But the season brings rewards for astronomers – not just more hours to explore the night sky, but also the chance to glimpse the eerie, elusive glow know as the Zodiacal light.

“When I first saw it, it was so bright, I thought it was some new source of artificial light pollution,” says Scott MacNeill, director of the Frosty Drew Observatory at Ninigret Park in Charlestown. It was about this time last year, just before dawn, when he noticed an unusual glow in the eastern sky. “Then I saw that some of the clouds passing by were actually obscuring my view of this light,” he says, and he knew the source wasn’t nearby, but far, far away. “And I finally realized, that’s Zodiacal light. I can’t believe Zodiacal light is here.”

Over billions of years, debris has gathered along the plane of the solar system, known as the ecliptic. “It’s a bunch of very small particulates left over from passing comets, asteroid collisions, and things like that,” says MacNeill. “It’s almost like the background light of the solar system. It’s this tenuous dust cloud. It’s not easy to see.” He had never seen it before, and didn’t expect it to be visible from anywhere in Rhode Island, where humidity and a multitude of artificial light sources obscure our view of the heavens. Last November, when the light appeared, he took pictures to share with the astronomy community. Soon other experts had confirmed that Rhode Island has in fact reclaimed its view of the solar system’s subtle gleam.

MacNeill credits a local ordinance that restricts outdoor lighting, enacted in Charlestown in 2012, for bringing extra-dark skies back to Ninigret Park. A few residents protested the change, but many local landowners have gladly switched to more efficient, dark-sky-compliant outdoor lighting. “That’s why Zodiacal light has come back to Charlestown, because of these changes,” MacNeill says. Ninigret is one of the best spots in Rhode Island to find the broad, dark sky that can reveal the light. Stop in on Friday nights, when the observatory is open, to explore the winter sky. And if you visit between 4 and 5 a.m., on a clear Saturday morning when the moon is well below the horizon, you might see the fabled Zodiacal light for yourself. frostydrew.org