Rum, a diamond-shaped island off the west coast of Scotland, lives with 40 people. Most of the island – 40 square miles of mountains, peatlands and heath – is a national nature reserve with residents primarily around Kinlock Bay to the east. What Lamb Island lacks is artificial lighting. No streetlights, light wind sports fields, neon signs, industrial sites, anything sparkles in the night sky. On a cold January day, the sun sets and rises quickly, succumbing to the blackness that envelops the island. The blackness is very deep, and stars suddenly appear at dusk, brightening the lunar glow.
For this reason, Lamb has recently been chosen as Europe's latest dark ski sanctuary. This is something Darkski International, a nonprofit organization focused on reducing light pollution, recognizes only in 22 other places around the world. With the ever-growing use of artificial lighting at night, it becomes increasingly rare that places where people can gazed upon the deep ancient lights of the universe. The Lamb designation is the result of long and meticulous attention provided by the Lamb Island Community Trust. The effort was led by the island's former tourism manager, Alex Mumford, and Lamb reserve officer, Leslie Watt. . Lamb “represents something bigger,” Mumford said, and “we aim to become a heaven for others to experience the darkness and the Milky Way.
Seven miles from Kinlock through the wild and sky centre of the island is located above Harris Bay, on the west side of rum, following the Greek-style spirit us built in the 19th century. Locals consider it a great place to photograph the night sky on the island. On a cloudy moonless night, one resident said, “I can't even look at my hands in front of my face.” But the night was clear, and the stars and meteors magnificently moved their wheels above their heads as the Milky Way unleashed the gloomy mountains, interrogations and wandering. Venus, Saturn and Jupiter stood on the sandstone pillars of the Spirit US.
Plans to renovate a nearby abandoned lodge are moving to a place where tourists can stay in their quest for heavenly splendor. “What you're looking at is not just a 2D map, but four dimensions: space and time,” Dr. Green said. “You're looking back at the past.”
A wax Gibbsmoon took a walk along the trail that was caught under the jagged peaks of rum giraffe. One of the brightest stars in the night sky, Vega glows above the horizon, sparkling against blackness. Astronomers measure the darkness of the night sky with a device called the sky quality meter, and measure night brightness to more than 21 rum, which is taken every month for two years. 22. By the end of 2024, measurements at Harris were approaching 21.9. This corresponds to 1 (1 out of 9) on the Botle Scale, and is a numerical evaluation of night sky brightness. The average suburban skies are 5.
In rum, human life lives in small pools of light that spill out of windows and shine from headlamps. One of the keys to achieving dark-skied sanctuary status is to help residents adapt and accept the darkness. The porch light is embedded in the entrance and heads down. The pier also has LED lights heading downwards, providing adequate lighting for marine safety. The shop's outdoor motion sensor light will only light up for a few minutes when needed. When the Community Trust began its sanctuary application in 2022, approximately 15% of homes and shops followed lighting recommendations outlined by the initiative. Currently, compliance is 95%.
The blackness of the night offers more than a universe sight that humans can enjoy. It's also essential for the environment. “Low light levels are important for nocturne species,” Watt said. “And artificial lighting can affect the feeding, breeding and migration behavior of many wildlife.”
In spring and summer, the island has large colonies of nested Manxia Water, about a quarter of the world's seabird population. When adult birds return to their sandy burrows after wintering in South America and escape in September, they are particularly prone to confusing with artificial light. Rum and the sign of the mainland port town of Malaig, where a ferry to the island departs, reminds people to turn out the light to protect the birds.
Education for adults and children, locals and tourists is central to the perception of dark sky. Rum teacher Andy McCallum showed off the models and maps of stars and planets designed by a handful of his students.
“To our students, we live on a small island, but it's a powerful reminder that we are part of a vast, interconnected universe,” he said. He added that he was proud of them to help maintain a unique environment for future generations. Katherine Heymans, an astrophysicist at the University of Edinburgh and a royal Scottish astronomer, defends Lamb's bid for Darkski status. The dark sky “means being part of nature and being human,” she said.
In January, adults officially celebrated the island's dark status, as adults stepped into the mobile planetarium and explored the night sky. McCallum's students were there too, chatting excitedly about the constellations they knew and the dark sky they saw. “It's amazing to see so much in the sky and feel like you're a part of it.”
