کد مقاله | کد نشریه | سال انتشار | مقاله انگلیسی | نسخه تمام متن |
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1013805 | 1482671 | 2013 | 15 صفحه PDF | دانلود رایگان |
Astronomical tourism represents a less-studied segment of sustainable tourism, where a dark night sky is the underlying resource. This article evaluates an astronomical tourism program, in this case at a national park with dark skies for observing. Bryce Canyon National Park (BCNP) in the southwestern United States has a well-developed astronomy program to serve visitors. The program consists of solar viewing during the day, multimedia evening programs, and night-time star gazing with telescopes. Depending on the specific measure used, it appears that up to 10% of park visitors may be involved with the formal Astronomy and Dark Sky Program and/or more informal astronomy activities. BCNP appears well positioned to take advantage of the dark sky attributes of the park and to educate visitors about the importance of maintaining and/or increasing the darkness of night skies. Potential future developments in the program may serve to further increase the number of visitors to BCNP.
Journal: Tourism Management Perspectives - Volume 7, July 2013, Pages 1–15