Feelings of happiness while counting stars in Osttirol

Stargazing is becoming increasingly difficult. Street lighting, flickering advertising signs and building floodlights immerse cities in an ever-growing sea of light. Where electric lighting arrived in Europe's cities at the end of the 19th century, some of them now shine 4,000 times brighter than natural night light. A study published by the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) in 2018 shows that night-time lighting is also increasing in many German federal states, with Bavaria becoming three to four percent brighter every year. This has consequences for humans and animals, as the body only produces the sleep hormone melatonin in the dark. Without darkness, we live against our internal clock, sleep too little and cannot recover sufficiently.

The people of Osttirol can't complain about a lack of darkness. In a region where everyone has around six soccer pitches to enjoy nature and there are more marmots than people, the air is extremely clear and light pollution is a foreign concept. The 266 three-thousand-metre peaks guarantee an endless view of the firmament, where more than 6,500 stars shine. It is a boundless feeling of happiness when you are surrounded by the highest mountains in Austria and observe the many twinkling witnesses of time. Mountaineers who set off very early in the morning for great summit adventures can enjoy this feeling. For example, in the Nationalpark Hohe Tauern around the Großglockner and Großvenediger. And if you stay overnight in the rustic Hochschoberhütte on a clear night, you can experience the full force of nature up close in the middle of the untouched mountain landscape of the Schober group, far away from disturbing environmental influences. A dream for stargazers.