When it comes to what remains of Southern California’s night sky, there are two big problems: The darkness on the edge of town isn’t nearly as dark as it used to be, and the edge of town creeps farther out all the time.
But drive into the California desert and the stars still shine bright. For less than a tank of gas or a single EV charge, you can rock your world. Just lie down, look up, and tune in to the universe.
This article appears in Issue 30 of Alta Journal.
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Along with Joshua Tree National Park and Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Death Valley National Park is one of three California destinations that have earned the status of International Dark Sky Park: The dry air enhances clarity, and Los Angeles is more than 200 miles in the rearview mirror, while a couple of mountain ranges keep Ridgecrest’s modest lights at bay. Even light pollution from Las Vegas is too far away to bleach the blackness of the Death Valley night.
For the darkest skies, visit Death Valley during a new moon and in winter, when the sun sets early and the hottest place on Earth cools down. The Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes are ideal for maximal awe. The sands create a comfortable surface, and they’re just a short hike off Highway 190—bring a blanket to stay warm, and settle into a swale to block any headlights. And forget about those astronomy apps—you’re here for a life-altering change in perception, a close encounter with pure wonder.
Because if dark skies elsewhere have the flat aspect of a child’s bedroom ceiling speckled with black-light pinpoints, the celestial show in the desert is positively three-dimensional. There’s a sense of depth and distance, of peering between the stars and into infinity. Or at least part of the way: With the naked eye, it’s possible to see for about 16,000 light-years (each one is about 5.9 trillion miles), the distance to the star V762 Cassiopeiae.
Closer to home, satellites slide along their invisible tracks, and jets out of LAX look less like red-eyes bound for JFK than like near-Earth galactic travelers on a final approach into Area 51. And remember, those stars aren’t just above you. They surround Earth, in every direction, as it floats through this endless cosmic sea, with all of us along for the ride.•
