STAR PARK ATTERSEE - TRAUNSEE
Experience nature at night in Austria's 1st star park
The Attersee-Traunsee Star Park is a light and landscape conservation area in which the night-time darkness, the natural night landscape, is regarded as a protected asset and protected from light pollution ("light smog"). This is achieved by implementing light management plans and retrofitting old and outdated luminaires and lighting fixtures.
A natural night sky has already become a rarity in Europe. In larger cities, it is so bright that a new moon night can no longer be distinguished from a full moon night. The naturally dark night sky must be declared a cultural asset worthy of protection, and the efficient and intelligent use of artificial light is therefore the order of the day.
What is a star park?
A star park is a dark sky place (DSP) and a landscape conservation area in which darkness at night is considered a protected resource and which is protected from even very low levels of light pollution ("light smog"). (Source: Wikipedia)
Where is the star park located?
Austria's 1st star park is located in the Attersee-Traunsee Nature Park in the municipalities of Altmünster, Aurach am Hongar, Schörfling, Weyregg am Attersee and Steinbach. It was officially recognised as a star park by the International Dark Sky Association in 2021.
What is special about a star park?
A natural night sky has already become a rarity in Europe. In larger cities, it is so bright that a new moon night can no longer be distinguished from a full moon night. The efficient and intelligent use of artificial light is the order of the day. With the naked eye, you can see up to 10 times more stars in the firmament in the Star Park than in Vienna, given the right weather conditions.
Moonwalk on the Milky Way
"From arm candlestick to night owl" or "It's good to be in the dark": You can find an exciting range of guided tours about the starry sky and nature here:
Star watching - Places
Experience unforgettable starry park nights, relax under the canopy of the sky, listen to the nocturnal sounds and enjoy lingering at the designated locations.
This is the best way to prepare for "Star watching":
- Call up a current weather forecast for the star park region
- Choose an observation site without blinding light if possible
- Put on warm clothes and take a hat and gloves with you
- Pack a seat pad, a blanket and a thermos flask (tea, coffee)
- Use a torch or headlamp with a red light (only for wayfinding)
- Activate night mode/dark mode on your smartphone
- Organise a rotating star chart or a starry sky app
The star park is part of the Attersee-Traunsee Nature Park. Book your holiday in the Attersee-Traunsee Nature and Star Park now
Gahberg Observatory
The Gahberg observatory in Weyregg am Attersee is run by the Salzkammergut Astronomical Working Group.
Guided tours are organised on a case-by-case basis depending on weather conditions. The observatory tour dates are announced at short notice (2 to 3 days) in advance by e-mail to registered interested parties. To find out the dates, please register here for the Gahberg Observatory newsletter.
FACTS ABOUT THE STAR PARK
Area of the Attersee-Traunsee Star Park: 106 km²
Participating municipalities: Altmünster, Aurach am Hongar, Schörfling, Weyregg am Attersee and Steinbach as a light protection municipality with the entire municipal area.
Lighting inventory in the area of the Sternenpark (as at 30 November 2020) approx. 460 light points (including light points of public/commercial outdoor lighting) of which approx. 75% comply with the light management plans at the time of application. The remaining light points must then be converted over the next 5 or 10 years (after certification), so that a conversion rate of 100% is achieved after 10 years. By raising awareness and providing incentives, the aim is to ensure that these retrofits are then carried out, especially in the course of necessary replacements of light fittings/lighting equipment.
The darkness of the night sky (or scientifically correct brightness of the night sky) is measured with a Sky Quality Meter (SQM-L), a device for objectively recording the brightness of the night sky. It measures the luminance of the sky in the astronomical unit of magnitude/square arcsecond (mag/arcsec2). The measurements were carried out by the Institute of Astrophysics at the University of Vienna in 2019 during two night-time mapping sessions (on the nights of 30 to 31 March and 30 to 31 August 2019). The minimum requirement for a night sky worthy of a star park (21.2 mag/arcsec²) was met in the area studied. In addition, 'Allsky images', fisheye images of the entire sky, were taken, which make it possible to analyse the quality of the night sky and the influence of artificial light at night using special software.
The Salzkammergut Astronomical Working Group, together with the neighbouring communities of Altmünster, Aurach am Hongar, Schörfling, Weyregg am Attersee and Steinbach, was the first Austrian region to be officially recognised as a star park by the International Dark Sky Association (IDA ) for the Attersee-Traunsee Nature Park.
Did you already know?
Attersee-Traunsee Nature Park is "Nature Park of the Year 2022"
Every year, the Association of Austrian Nature Parks (VNÖ) selects one of currently 48 nature parks as "Nature Park of the Year". In 2022, this title goes to the Attersee-Traunsee Nature Park, which shone in particular with the comprehensive development of its unique selling points Zwetschkenreich, Waldkammergut and Austria's first nocturnal landscape conservation area, the Attersee-Traunsee Star Park. Projects, offers and activities were judged in the following categories: Protection of the cultural landscape, education, recreation, regional development and marketing - the Attersee-Traunsee Nature Park achieved excellent results in all areas.
An independent jury of experts from the 4 pillars - represented by the Federal Environment Agency, the "Alpine Pearls" organisation, the Environmental Education Centre, the University of Vienna and the ORF - selected the Upper Austrian representative, the Attersee-Traunsee Nature Park, as the winner from 7 applications from 5 federal states.
