Capturing the Hill Country night sky Capturing the majestic view of planets, stars

Amateur astronomers study the stars over Enchanted Rock State Park. during It was celebrating being named a Gold Tier Dark Skies park by the International Dark Skies Association. Amateur astronomers study the stars over Enchanted Rock State Park. during It was celebrating being named a Gold Tier Dark Skies park by the International Dark Skies Association. Photo: Joshua Trudell /For The Express-News Photo: Joshua Trudell /For The Express-News Image 1 of / 9 Caption Close Capturing the Hill Country night sky 1 / 9 Back to Gallery

As the skies darkened, Lisa Farmer leaned into her telescope, finally giving a little squeal of joy.

“There it is!” she said, pointing to the first planet in sight — Jupiter, low on the horizon.

As it grew darker over Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, dozens of telescopes pointed at the sky, examining details of the stars, moons and planets glowing overhead.

“This is something that we have lost that is relatively easy to get back,” said astronomer John Watson of Blanco. “It’s not like reclaiming a polluted river or something — you turn off your lights, and the sky is there.”

“A lot of people have never, ever seen the Milky Way just because of light pollution,” he added.

Texas has become a leader in the movement to reclaim dark skies from light pollution. Four areas — Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, Copper Breaks State Park, the town of Dripping Springs and Big Bend National Park — have been certified by the International Dark Skies Association for making efforts to control their light pollution.

That’s the most of any state, and Texas Parks & Wildlife Department officials said as many as a dozen other state parks are currently working toward certification, with a system-wide goal of all parks meeting the dark sky requirements.

“There’s a commitment all the way from our executive director and our state parks director about preserving the night sky,” said Enchanted Rock superintendent Doug Cochran. “It’s going to take a few years (to make all parks compliant), because some parks have a lot more infrastructure. It was easier for us because we had very few buildings and lights.”

Lighting is one of the biggest areas of concern for the International Dark Skies Association, a Tuscon, Arizona-based nonprofit group that focuses on light pollution.

It doesn’t mean that all the lights need to be turned off, however.

“The first thing people think is I want to turn their lights out,” said William Wren, a special assistant to the superintendent at the McDonald Observatory and a lifetime member of the association. “He wants to pull the plug and leave us in the dark with no safety or security at night. That’s just not true.”

“Astronomers are not against outdoor lighting at night,” Wren continued. “We are in favor of good outdoor lighting at night.”

More Information Night Sky Photography: Rob Greebon, an Austin photographer who has often photographed the sky above Enchanted Rock State Natural Area at night, offered these tips about getting started with night sky photography: 1: Always use a sturdy, stable tripod. 2: Always use a remote (or a timer — anything where you do not have to touch the camera to trigger the shutter). Any vibration will affect the sharpness of the image. 3: Know the moon phase and what time it rises/sets. If the moon is up, its light is enough to wash out much of the Milky Way. I use Stellarium.org to see what the sky is doing — if I’m going to be up at 2 or 3 a.m., I want to be pretty sure what I’m going to see. 4: Be patient with focusing — it can be difficult. I’ll set my ISO initially at something really high (12,000 and up). I’ll take some test shots, each time trying to fine-tune the stars. On the display on the back of the camera, you can often zoom in and try to find a few stars and play with the focus this way. This is the most tedious process — just trying to focus the stars. When I am ready to shoot “keepers” I set the ISO between 1600-2000. 5: The wider your lens, the longer the exposure can be while keeping the stars sharp. Normally, I try to keep the exposure times under 30 seconds for a 16-35mm lens. 6: Foreground elements always add interest. A silhouette of a windmill or tree give scale to the Milky Way. If adept at Photoshop, you can practice light painting with foreground elements and blending an image of the Milky Way with the foreground. 7: You can upgrade and purchase one of the many star trackers now available. They are not necessarily cheap, but very effective. I can take three- to five-minute exposures at ISO 800 now with great success and no star trails. For More Information: Visit the International Dark Skies Association at darksky.org. Enchanted Rock State Natural Area:tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/ enchanted-rock Rob Greebon Photography:robgreebonphotography.com

Good outdoor lighting means directing light toward where it is needed and using better shielding to keep it from escaping into the sky, he added, noting that lighting changes will result in saving money.

“When you aim a floodlight at the horizon, half of it goes above the horizon. It’s pure waste,” he said. “Aim them down, and you’ve got more light on your property.”

One of the areas that has been of growing concern recently are the oil fields, Wren said, showing satellite photos from 2004 and 2014 with distinct bands of light appearing in the Eagle Ford and Permian Basin. He and others have been working for the past 18 months to improve the practices of the oil companies — largely by showing how better lighting can save them money, he said.

Enchanted Rock, the sixth-most popular park in the state system, is in the heart of a triangle of Hill Country towns that are trying to keep the skies dark by using ordinances to regulate outdoor lights. Fredericksburg enacted one last year, while Mason and Llano are considering similar proposals.

“A lot of people who live around Fredericksburg grew up in the Hill Country, and the night skies are part of their childhood, a part of their family history, and they are passionate about it,” said Martha Zeiher, executive director of the Hill Country Land Trust, a conservation group. “In the Hill Country, people take pride that we’ve been lucky enough to live here, and the night skies are part of that.”

At a recent celebration marking Enchanted Rock’s status as a gold tier dark skies park — a status awarded by the IDSA as the best sky quality possible — amateur astronomers were enthusiastic about the progress being made.

“From the point of view of an amateur astronomer, it’s the difference between being able to do your hobby and not,” said Mark Ward, vice president of the Hill Country Astronomers. “People lose contact with their perspective of where we are in the universe. From a spiritual and pastoral point of view, I think it’s very important to have a perspective of our place in the universe and what a precious resource our planet is.”

Steve Farmer said he can only see about 50 stars from his yard in Round Rock because of light pollution. The difference was startling when he tried to stargaze outside the city.

“We went to Canyon of the Eagles, and I couldn’t find any of my normal landmarks, because there were so many stars,” he said.

He got his wife, Lisa, a telescope for her 40th birthday, and they’ve been studying the stars for the past six months.

“That was the best birthday present ever,” Lisa said. “Some people get diamonds — I got the stars.”