DoSER and the American Astronomical Society would like to invite you to a screening of the award-winning documentary "The City Dark: a search for night on a planet that never sleeps" on May 10th at 5:30 pm at the AAAS Headquarters in Washington, DC. Join us as we explore how the advent of electricity and artificial light has shaped modern society and why dark skies and celestial vistas may be a surprisingly important part of life.
View the trailer for "The City Dark"
Without a doubt, the advent of artificial lighting in the mid-1800s has utterly revolutionized society, and it has indeed brought with it many positive changes. But with 24-hour lighting, particularly in urban areas, comes severe light pollution that blocks our view of the night sky - a view that for millennia human beings before us took for granted. The screening of "The City Dark" (52 min) will be followed by a discussion in which our expert panelists will share their thoughts on how losing darkness affects our science, spirituality, and health - in short, what do we lose when we lose the night sky, and what we can do about it?
If you are unable to attend, we plan to post a video of the panel discussion on this page soon after the event.
Schedule for the Evening
5:30 pm - Film Screening of "The City Dark"
6:30 pm - Panel Discussion
7:30 pm - Reception
Please RSVP here