That same study suggested that 2/3 of Americans and over 50% of Europeans were particularly affected, and furthermore that 99% of the US and 66% of the world live in areas considered “polluted” Again, this was as of 2001.

Chaco Culture National Historical Park joined the ranks of “protected Dark Sky Park” just last year.

They don’t build the $1.35 billion dollar E-ELT (European Extremely Large Telescope… yes, that’s its real name) just anywhere.

Deep in the Utah desert, Bryce Canyon boasts “7500 [visible] stars on a moonless night.”

Clayton Lake State Park in New Mexico joined the ranks of International Dark Sky Park in 2010, with a renowned observatory run almost exclusively by avid volunteers.

All 370,658 spectacular acres of Northumberland Park are now protected as a “Dark Sky Park,” as of just last December.

Widely considered to be one of the nation’s best-kept stargazing secrets, Cherry Springs State Park is one of the premier locations for spotting constellations on the east coast.

A hot contestant for the next “Dark Sky Park,” the wild Arizona desert makes for an incredible backdrop to take in the night sky.

Boasting some of the darkest skies in Europe, 7,000+ stars and planets visible without the aide of a telescope, and 185,329 acres of park to take it all in from, Galloway Forest Park is Scotland’s ultimate stargazing venue.

Inside the very first internationally recognized Dark Sky Reserve, Mont-Mégantic National Park (and the associated ASTROLab) is possibly the best place to look up at night in Quebec.

Deeply concerned with the issue of light pollution, the Hungarian government has been fixing to preserve as much of the night sky as possible (starting with the protection of, and promotion of ecotourism to, the Zselic Starry Sky Park).

They don’t call Africa the “dark continent” for nothing. Not only is NamibRand renowned for the brightness of its stars, but it is also one of the largest nature reserves in the whole of Africa.

You know those incredible fantasy shots of galaxies far away that look more like an artistic interpretation rather than actual space? Most of those are taken at La Silla in the barren Atacama Desert.

A relatively new park and fun for the whole family, Observatory Park in Geauga near Cleveland is Ohio’s window into the night sky.

At 3.4 million acres, Death Valley National Park was crowned the world’s largest Dark Sky Park at the time of its coronation in February of last year.

A key draw for tourists to the region, the stars at Lake Tekapo inside Aoraki Mackenzie have earned it a spot as New Zealand’s finest Dark Sky Reserve.

Deep in the farm country of Hungary, Hortobágy National Park is regularly overlooked as one of the world’s best places to look up at night, but the secret’s out now.

The self-proclaimed “largest astronomy park in the world,” Jasper National Park is so large that all of the other Dark Sky Preserves could fit inside of it.

Unsurprisingly, deep inside a canyon in the middle of the desert, far outside civilization, happens to be a spectacular place to see the celestial bodies.

By day, the gorgeous scenery of the Canadian Rockies. By night, a sea of stars, mirrored on the glasslike waters of Moraine Lake.

The Canary Island of La Palma (home of Caldera de Taburiente National Park) sits above a natural sea of clouds on a temperature inversion layer. This cloud-filter keeps the light pollution out of the night sky.

From the National Park Service: “On a clear, moonless night in Great Basin National Park, thousands of stars, five of our solar system’s eight planets, star clusters, meteors, man-made satellites, the Andromeda Galaxy, and the Milky Way can be seen with the naked eye. The area boasts some of the darkest night skies left in the United States.”

The regular venue for the Astronomical Society of New South Wales’ Annual South Pacific Star Party, Wiruna is one of the greatest stargazing hot-spots in southeast Australia.

Pic du Midi Dark Sky Reserve is one of the five locations in the world where the stars are so visible at night, that researchers can use spectopolarimeters to measure the magnetic fields that surround them.

From August to April, Denali’s day wanes to a mere 5-6 hours of daylight, offering extensive opportunities for stargazing and even catching the elusive aurora.

Few things provide such an amazing backdrop for the constellations like the eerie glow of the incredibly active Arenal volcano in Costa Rica.

The 20th Dark Sky Park in the world, Poloniny National Park is also part of the “Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and the Ancient Beech Forests of Germany.”

Boasting some of the darkest skies year-round, Exmoor National Park became the first Dark Sky Park in Europe, in 2011.

Officially the first Dark Sky Park in the southeastern United States, Blue Ridge Observatory and Star Park is also the first of its kind to be operated by an institution of higher education (namely, Mayland Community College).

One of the original International Dark Sky Parks, the Headlands in Emmet County sprawls across 600 acres of forest at the northern tip of Michigan.

A time-lapse photographer’s dream, Brecon Beacons National Park was one of the five founding International Dark Sky Reserves, a campaign that was personally backed by Prince Charles.

Sure, you may have to travel 100 miles outside of Miami, but Big Pine Key in Florida guarantees the trip is worth it by providing rare views of stars typically only visible to those on or below the Equator.

Every night, the 550,000 acres of raw Californian desert become one of the best spots in the country to witness the awe of the cosmos, a not-so-secret that draws over 400,000 people to the park every year.

As the highest peak in the Balkans, it seems fitting that the name of Mount Musala translates roughly to “near God,” (since from the top you’re as close as you can get to the heavenly bodies above while in Bulgaria).

Natural Bridges International Dark Sky Park was the world’s first International Dark Sky Park. ‘Nuff said.

So far north that it’s actually inside the Arctic Circle, Kiruna’s spectacular night sky and regular auroras draw thousands of tourists to the otherwise incredibly remote small town.

The view from the top of the White Mountains in Inyo National Forest might be a bit drab during the day, but it transforms completely by night (often revealing the Milky Way and Andromeda Galaxies to the naked eye).

The Big Bend National Park is larger than the entire state of Rhode Island, and is considered to have the darkest skies in the contiguous United States.

One of the aurora (and polar bear) capitals of the world, Churchill goes the summer months without much of a night sky (but when the daylight all-but-disappears in winter, the night sky returns in force).

Equally as beautiful during the day as it is at night, Rocky Mountain National Park has one of the most famously photographed night skies in the world.

The darkest skies in Germany, Westhavelland Dark Sky Reserve was given its silver-tier sky park status in February of this year.

Nestled in Jeff Davis County, University of Texas’s McDonald Observatory is also the home of StarDate, a daily radio program for all things celestial.

Let’s be honest, the only thing more incredible than being on the big island of Hawaii is discovering that it’s also one of the world’s greatest spots to stargaze.

The sister-reserve of New Zealand’s Aoraki Mackenzie, Kerry International Dark Sky Reserve proudly stands as “the only gold-teir reserve in the Northern Hemisphere,” and encompasses Valentia Island.

The observatory at Paranal is situated below one of the darkest skies (and is therefore one of the most popular night-photography spots for star-seekers) south of the equator.

Just when you thought Canada was at maximum capacity for Dark Sky Preserves, Kejimkujik Dark Sky Preserve ups the ante with a substantial population of fireflies, which ensures that you have something twinkling to gaze at regardless of the weather.

Designed with the stargazing enthusiast in mind, the Hotel Elqui Domos in Chile literally provides a window to the night sky, from the comfort of your bedroom.

Home of the annual “Night Sky Festival,” Acadia National Park represents the single most star-dense sky on the east coast.