Night Sky

Dear Neighbors,

A little piece of heaven! We bet you love living in the Capitol/Snowmass Creek Valleys

as much as we do! The Snowmass-Capitol Creek Caucus is an elected volunteer board of

Snowmass residents that has been working to preserve the natural beauty of our valley for

nearly 50 years. If you live or own property in our Caucus area, you are a member of the

Caucus. You can get involved in your neighborhood, and help us achieve our goals…one

of which is to preserve our dark skies.

We care very deeply about our dark starry night skies.

We are so lucky to be able to observe the Milky Way, planets, eclipses, comets, and phases of

the moon. More importantly, dark skies are needed for the proper functioning of natural ecosystems, including migration of birds, and safe passage of deer, elk, and other wildlife between pasture

and stream. Thus, in our Master Plan to guide the development in our valleys, we strongly

encourage minimal use of low-impact outdoor lighting. Lights that shine in all directions, the upward

lighting of trees, driveway lighting, and extended holiday lights are incompatible with Pitkin County’s

lighting code, as well as the Caucus Master Plan.

There are easy ways to achieve low-impact lighting. Please, take a moment to learn about the importance

of dark skies by visiting darksky.org. Also, please study Pitkin County’s lighting guidelines at: https://pitkincounty.com/DocumentCenter/View/28816/chapter-07 (County Code Chapter 7, Development Standards, 7-20-140, starting on page 101).

Turn off your lights, let your eyes adjust to the darkness, and enjoy the wondrous night skies of Snowmass!

Thank you! Your neighbors, The Snowmass-Capitol Creek Caucus Board

Our Spectacular Night Sky

By Judith Frey

Throughout human history until the last 100 years, the spectacular night sky was part of everyone's experience. We are fortunate that the Snowmass-Capitol Creek valley has some of the darkest skies in Colorado. In the Denver area, I encountered school children who had never seen the stars!

Successful stargazing depends on acclimating one's eyes to total darkness so that very faint objects can be seen with the naked eye. Ambient light prevents one's eyes from adjusting to the dark. It is my hope that all homeowners will shield outside lights so that they shine downward, where the light is needed, and not upward or in all directions. These first-hand experiences of the universe that we have in this valley are increasingly rare in our age.

Exterior Lighting

The Pitkin County Land Use Code LUC 7.20.140 provides specific guidance on exterior lighting:

"Briefly, exterior lights must be shielded and/or directed so that the bulb is not visible from the property line."

I would also add that it is not necessary--or advisable from a stargazer's perspective--to illuminate the night sky! The Land Use Code goes into more detail and provides excellent examples of shielded lighting.

The Night Sky Through the Seasons

On New Year's Eve at midnight, the brightest star in the sky, Sirius, reaches its highest point in the heavens. Called the star's midnight culmination, this event happens once every year. Sirius is the bright star below and to the left of the constellation Orion.

Welcome back, Orion--the large constellation dominating the high southern sky in the winter months. The middle "star" in Orion's "sword" appears fuzzy to the naked eye. This is actually the Orion Nebula, an interstellar cloud of gas that is a major star-forming region--the closest one to the earth at 1,270 light-years away. With a small telescope you can see four newly-formed stars that are blowing the gas away from them into space. It's amazing what lies just beyond our sight in the night sky!

The Milky Way--our own galaxy--stretches across the night sky in summer. In winter, it is very much fainter because we are looking outward through the ends of the spiral arms where the stars are fewer and farther between. In summer, we are looking inward toward the center of the galaxy where the arms are much closer together and the stars are denser. To the left of the constellation Scorpius, very low in the southern summer sky, about halfway above the curving tail, is the rotational center of our galaxy.

In August and September, with dark enough skies, you can see the Andromeda Galaxy fairly low in the eastern sky. Just 2.5 million light-years away, it is our closest galactic neighbor (except for the dwarf galaxies that orbit our own Milky Way--most notably the Magellanic Clouds, visible to the naked eye in the southern hemisphere). The Andromeda Galaxy is fainter than individual stars--you need at least 15 minutes in total darkness for your eyes to adjust enough to see it. So—you are straining to make out a faint blob of light that you can barely see, ho-hum! But when you realize what you're looking at--a completely different star system, larger than the Milky Way, that you can view with your own eyes--then it becomes thrilling. With binoculars or even a small telescope, you can make out the spiral arms of the galaxy.

The Andromeda Galaxy, visible to the right of the Milky Way

Photo credits: earthsky.org - Many thanks to this fascinating website.

2026 ASTRONOMICAL Events
by NasA.gov

February 28: Planetary Parade

On February 28, we will see not one, not two, but six planets in the evening sky. Mercury, Venus, Neptune, Saturn, Uranus, and Jupiter will appear shortly after sunset. Four of those planets will be visible to the unaided eye, weather permitting, but only those with optical assistance will be able to view Uranus and Neptune (Mercury can sometimes be harder to spot, too).

March 3: Total Lunar Eclipse

In March, a total lunar eclipse will be visible for those in North America – especially for those on the West Coast. This event is for the earlier risers, as it will occur right before sunrise on the 3rd. Lunar eclipses occur when Earth is positioned precisely between the Moon and Sun – shading the Moon in Earth’s shadow.

May 31: Full Blue Moon

A Blue Moon signifies the rare occasion of having a second full moon in one month – hence the phrase “once in a blue Moon”. We will get one of these rare Blue Moons at the end of May – meaning we will have a total of 13 full Moons in 2026. But don’t be fooled by the name – this moon will not actually be blue in color.

June 8-9: Venus and Jupiter Conjunction

We will be treated to another special planetary event this year when the two brightest planets in the sky – Venus and Jupiter – will appear only a pinky finger apart in June. No telescopes will be required for this one!

August 12-13: Perseids Meteor Shower

The best annual meteor shower is ready to put on a show this year. With a New Moon in the sky, we should have excellent viewing opportunities across most of the world – weather permitting.

December 13-14: Geminids Meteor Shower

Another great annual meteor shower – the Geminids – will also show off for us this year. Step outside right after midnight to catch these famous “green” meteors streak across the sky.

December 24: Supermoon

To end the year, we are being treated to a special Christmas Eve Supermoon. A “supermoon” occurs when a full Moon is closest to Earth – making it appear bigger and brighter. So don’t worry kids, Santa will have lots of light to deliver all his toys.

Other 2026 Sky Events

January 2-3: Quadrantids Meteor Shower
January 3: Supermoon
January 10: Jupiter at Opposition
February 17: Annular Solar Eclipse (Visible in Antarctica)
March 20: March Equinox
April 21-22: Lyrids Meteor Shower
May 5-6: Eta Aquariids Meteor Shower
June 21: June Solstice
July 30-31: Southern Delta Aquariids AND alpha Capricornids Meteor Shower
August 12: Total Solar Eclipse (Visible in Greenland, Iceland, and Spain)
September 23: September Equinox
September 25: Neptune at Opposition
October 4: Saturn at Opposition
October 7: Draconids Meteor Shower
October 21-22: Orionids Meteor Shower
November 4-5: Taurids Meteor Shower
November 17: Leonids Meteor Shower
November 24: Supermoon
November 25: Uranus at Opposition
December 21: December Solstice
December 21-22: Ursids Meteor Shower