Lots of hard work went into making Grand Canyon an even better place to enjoy the night sky in recent years and that effort has been recognized.

Grand Canyon National Park has been named Dark Sky Place of the Year by the International Dark-Sky Association. The park earned Dark Sky status in June after a six-year effort to replace nearly 3,500 light fixtures and perform other updates in the 1.2 million-acre park.

Grand Canyon is the largest Dark Sky Park in the world.

The light-reducing work was done in partnership with the Grand Canyon Conservancy, park concessionaire Xanterra South Rim and a host of other individuals and organizations.

Working to reduce light since 2013

The effort dates to 2013, when the groups and individuals started taking stock of the thousands of light fixtures in the park to determine what changes needed to be made.

“Grand Canyon Conservancy has been working to make Grand Canyon an International Dark Sky Park for years,” said Mindy Riesenberg, director of marketing and communications for the conservancy.

“To be awarded the International Dark Sky Place of the Year is a true honor, especially as we commemorate 100 years as a national park this year. We’re committed to continuing to protect the canyon’s night sky and ensuring its star-filled nights remain for future generations.”

The award will be formally presented in November at a ceremony at International Dark-Sky Association headquarters in Tucson.

The park celebrated its dark-sky status during a centennial celebration last June. Grand Canyon National Park’s annual star party – also held in June – is the largest astronomy event in a national park.

Other Arizona dark-sky places

Grand Canyon National Park isn’t the only designated dark-sky area in Arizona. Other areas receiving the distinction include:

Camp Verde.

Flagstaff.

Fountain Hills.

Kartchner Caverns State Park.

Oracle State Park.

Parashant National Monument.

Petrified Forest National Park.

Sedona.

Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument.

Tonto National Monument.

Tumacácori National Historical Park.

Village of Oak Creek (Big Park).

Walnut Canyon National Monument.

Wupatki National Monument.

Reach the reporter at weldon.johnson@arizonarepublic.com. Or follow him on Twitter at @weldonjohnson.

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