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Category of Astronomical Heritage: dark skies
Eastern Alpine and Großmugl starlight areas (multiple locations): Großmugl Starlight Oasis

Format: Full Description (IAU Extended Case Study format)

Identification of the property

Country/State Party 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 3
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-10 17:09:16
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Austria

 

State/Province/Region 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 3
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-10 17:09:34
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Korneuburg district, Lower Austria

 

Name 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 7
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-10 17:10:12
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Großmugl Starlight Oasis

(Part of Eastern Alpine and Großmugl starlight areas)

 

Geographical co-ordinates and/or UTM 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 3
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-10 17:10:39
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Latitude 48° 29′ 18″ N, longitude 16° 13′ 23″ E, elevation 265m above MSL (Large tumulus)

 

Maps and plans,
showing boundaries of property and buffer zone 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 17
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-11 12:15:40
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Fig 1 shows the proposed core zone and buffer zone of the Großmugl Starlight Oasis.

<strong>Fig. 1: </strong>The core-zone (red) and b

Fig. 1: The core-zone (red) and buffer-zone (yellow) of the Großmugl Starlight Oasis. Top: As viewed from overhead. The area shown is about 30 × 40km, 30 km NNW of central Vienna; the Danube is visible at the bottom. Bottom: As viewed from the north. The Vienna basin is visible at the upper left; the eastern end of the Alps is in the upper right corner.

 

Area of property and buffer zone 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 16
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-11-23 11:04:11
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

  • Core area: approx. 25 km²
  • Buffer zone: approx. 300 km²

The core zone (red line in Fig. 1) has a radius of approximately 3km. It covers an area of about 30 × 40km and is situated 30km NNW of central Vienna (the Danube is visible at the bottom of Fig. 1 Top). It contains some major prehistoric remains—the large tumulus, the Steinabrunn and Linear circular ditched enclosures (Fig. 2)—as well as a number of important sky-observing spots and viewpoints.

The buffer-zone is an area approximately 10km in radius around the large tumulus at Großmugl. Its border (yellow line in Fig. 1) follows the visible landscape horizon, which is largely shaped by the “inner ring” of a natural light protection system created by the topography. In the directions towards the main Alpine chain, where remote high mountains up to 200 km distant may be seen, the horizon is defined by clearly visible mountain peaks. Towards the north and between the south and south-east (the general direction of Vienna) the border follows mountains or ridges. In other directions the buffer zone extends to hill-crests, forests patches and landscape “divides” in order to include the topographical features that shield the area against the influx of light (Fig. 1 Bottom; see also Fig. 3).

The buffer zone, or high-sensitivity zone, will thus include the nearby area that can be directly seen from the core zone, thereby guaranteeing that the effects of air or light pollution will not affect the core zone (cf. Starlight Reserve Concept p. 20). It also protects the wide and unobstructed views towards and above the horizon and, in particular, ensures full access to the celestial hemisphere. This combination provides protection for the entire night-landscape as seen from the tumulus area and other viewpoints in the core zone.

In sum, the sky-landscape system of the core zone is protected by the buffer zone, which prevents unwanted artificial light intrusion into the site while enabling natural light-flow within it.

<strong>Fig. 2: </strong>Prehistoric remains (yell

Fig. 2: Prehistoric remains (yellow symbols) in the core zone (marked in red) of the Großmugl Starlight Oasis. They include the Großmugl large tumulus (lower centre), the Steinabrunn circular ditch system and the Linear ditch and grave-field.

 

<strong>Fig. 3: </strong>Bird’s-eye view (lookin

Fig. 3: Bird’s-eye view (looking south) of the topography at the site that protectsthe core-zone from the lights of Vienna. The shielding effect against the artificial sky brightening caused by Vienna’s lights and light dome can be imagined by looking at the shadows cast by a low morning Sun. The triple hill chains between the core zone (in red) are visible towards the upper left with the Vienna-basin in the corner. Two of the hill-chains are included in the buffer zone that is outlined in yellow. The village of Großmugl is visible in the lower right corner with the large tumulus just above it (yellow marker). The conspicuous mountain in the upper right is the Schneeberg (2076m).

 

 

 

 

Description

Description of the property 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 7
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-11-23 11:05:51
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

The Großmugl administrative unit (established in 1970) is a community in the hill-lands of Lower Austria’s Weinviertel (Wine Quarter) with an area of 64.38 km². It is a rural, agricultural area to the NW of Vienna with a particular elevated-plane topography and villages in depressions. An ’archaeological landscape‘ extends around the large tumulus at its centre (Fig. 2). The main prehistoric remains are:

  • the large tumulus from the Hallstatt period (lower centre),
  • the Steinabrunn circular ditched enclosure belonging to the mid-Neolithic period (upper left), and
  • the Linen circular ditched enclosure and grave-field (upper right).

A full inventory of remains is beyond the scope of this case study and necessarily must involve additional archaeological and conservation studies.

The open landscape features wide horizons that allow access to the entire firmament (almost a full hemisphere) with a dependable deep Milky Way sky that guarantees the visibility of the Zodiac and Western stellar constellations. The site is naturally protected against artificial light at night by the particular village-structure and a unique natural light-rejection system, consisting of three hill-chains shielding the sky-landscape-system from the city of Vienna with its centre at a distance of 33 km (see Fig. 3).

The core zone and a large proportion of the buffer zone constitute a rural area whose starry sky view forms part of its recognised identity (’Großmugl an der Milchstraße‘) and values. It comprises a group of ten small villages (’Katastralgemeinden‘) keeping the night sky reasonably free from atmospheric and light pollution effects by (at least in part) explicitly realising and following the definition of a Starlight Oasis in the Starlight Reserve Concept, p.13. The ten villages are Füllersdorf, Geitzendorf, Großmugl, Herzogbirbaum, Nursch, Ottendorf, Ringendorf, Roseldorf, Steinabrunn und Schloß Glaswein.

 

History and development 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 3
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-10 17:16:16
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Human presence in Austria’s Danube area is witnessed by some of humanity’s earliest known pieces of art. Probably the most famous of these is the ’Venus of Willendorf‘, estimated to be 27,000 years old, discovered in 1908 near Willendorf, about 64 km to the south-west of Großmugl.

The region around Großmugl in north-eastern Lower Austria is recognized to be the oldest cultural landscape in Austria with continuous settlement. Abundant finds in the 19th century had already indicated the area’s significance for early human history. In 1871, the archaeologist Matthäus Much first reported the tumuli of the Großmugl area, locally known as Leeberge (’grave hills‘).

The fertile hills around Großmugl with their Löß (loess) soils have been a favoured area for settlement since the first farming cultures developed in central Europe during the 6th millennium BCE. Stone tools of all shapes and sizes together with fragments of Linearbandkeramik (LBK) pottery have helped identify numerous early Neolithic settlements in Großmugl, Herzogbirbaum and Roseldorf. Farm buildings of the era were huge houses up to c. 35 m long constructed of timber posts. Goats and sheep were domesticated at first, followed by cattle.

New influences from the lower Danube arriving in the early 5th millennium BCE resulted in the appearance of larger village complexes which became foci for smaller settlements. Agriculture and cattle breeding were practised simultaneously: aurochs still constituted a significant proportion of the cattle. Lengyel Culture settlements are documented in Großmugl, Herzogbirbaum and Steinabrunn.

Kreisgrabenanlagen (circular ditched enclosures), which reached their highpoint in the Middle Neolithic, are among the most impressive prehistoric monuments of Central Europe, although their function is still unclear. Almost all of the 40 examples known in Austria are located in Lower Austria’s Wine Quarter. One of the most impressive is Lange Ries, about 1300 m to the North of Steinabrunn. Built between 4800 and 4500 BCE, the maximum diameters of its outer and inner ditches are 88 m and 58 m, respectively.

In the Early Bronze Age, 20th to 16th century BCE, a metal-processing centre apparently existed in the Großmugl area. In the Moravian-Lower-Austrian border region, Bronze was predominantly traded in the form of ingot torcs (ring-shaped bars). Two depots have been found in Geitzendorf. More than 61 ingot torcs were discovered in the Geitzendorf fields in 1910, another 39 in 1949 (as well as six arm-spirals), and another in 1979. Further depots surfaced in Senning and Sierndorf, to the south. In Großmugl, four of the typical Hockergräber (crouched burials) of this era were found as well as a ceramic depot and four Siedlungsgruben (settlement pits) belonging to an extended Early Bronze Age settlement. More settlements are known in Füllersdorf, Herzogbirbaum, Steinabrunn and Roseldorf.

In 2008-09 a burial ground was discovered in Geitzendorf. The fifteen graves were classified as belonging to the classical stage BzA2 of the Únětice Culture. One of them contained an archaeological highlight that brought worldwide attention: the first evidence of a female metal worker in the Early Bronze Age. Together with costume and ceramic remains, her grave contained a stone anvil and hammer and flint chisels as used for metal-processing, in particular the fabrication of jewellery.

In the Middle Bronze Age (16th to 14th century BCE) the Hügelgräberkultur (Tumulus Culture) shaped an area from eastern France to western Hungary. The mounds clearly contain elite burials: the grave-goods typically include many heavy arm-rings and elaborate necklaces for women and weaponry such as axes and daggers for men. Many influences are already apparent from the Minoan-Mycenaean cultures of the Aegean and these left traces in Großmugl. In 1966-67, spectacular caches were uncovered featuring a double-handled amphora and other pottery demonstrating the artistic richness of the era.

At the onset of the 13th century BCE a new cultural complex was spreading into Central Europe characterised by their practice of cremating corpses and burying their ashes in urns. Four Urnfield Culture graves discovered near Großmugl in 1939 contained numerous bronzes together with a famous ’violin-bow‘ fibula. There are also numerous finds from the era in Herzogbirbaum and Steinabrunn. Two grape-seeds from the Urnfield Culture period, dated 992-810 BCE, have been found in Stillfried an der March, east of Großmugl in the Wine Quarter. They provide some of the oldest evidence for the cultivation of grape vines in Central Europe. (Today the Wine Quarter, with 14,000 ha of vineyards, is the largest wine-producing region in Austria.)

For Großmugl the most evident and important prehistoric era is the Hallstatt period (Early Iron Age, 8th to 5th century BCE). The largest tumulus from the Hallstatt Culture in Central Europe, 16m in height, is found less than 1 km outside the village, and gives the village its name. It is first mentioned in 1293 as ’Grassemugel‘ (Slavic krasa ’beautiful‘ + mogyla ’burial mound‘). The mound is untouched; it has never been scientifically investigated. Another tumulus 50 m to the NW, much smaller today, is known locally as the ’Queen’s Grave‘. Excavations between 1950 and 1956 uncovered the remains of a wooden chamber and numerous large ceramic vessels, but their state of conservation rendered scientific studies impossible. Two further flattened tumuli in the immediate vicinity have been identified on aerial photographs.

A number of Hallstatt Culture sites have been found around Großmugl. Excavations in 1938-39 and 1989 to 1994 uncovered large settlement areas at the ’Todtenweg‘ (way of the deaths), including a fireplace and aligned loom-weights that indicate a weaving hut.

Late Iron Age (5th century BCE to 0) settlements of the La Tène (Celtic) Culture are known in Großmugl, Herzogbirbaum and Roseldorf. The "Fürstensitz Keltenstadt‘ on the Sandberg ridge near Roseldorf is the largest known Celtic settlement in Austria. The site contains Austria’s oldest known mint: some 1500 gold and silver coins were found here. Typical ceramic potsherds containing graphite have come to light in Großmugl.

Germanic settlement in Lower Austria during the 1st and 2nd century CE was focused in the central and eastern Wine Quarter and was dense north of the Danube. But only stray finds from the Roman imperial period (1st to 4th century) are known from Großmugl. An excavated settlement on the widely visible Oberleiserberg at Ernstbrunn, in the Centre of the Weinviertel about 50 km north of Vienna, contains a residence in the style of a Roman palace and various facilities for the artisanal production, suggestive of a manor house built during the migration period.

The arrival of Slavic population groups during the 5th to 10th centuries is evident from 9th-century burial fields. Little is known about daily life in Slavic settlements, although a socketed lance-head (Tüllenlanzenspitze) has been uncovered in Großmugl.

The Christianization of the Danube area in the 8th century progressed from Passau under Charlemagne; a large mission started up in the Weinviertel between 1000 and 1150. Forest clearance resumed as the population grew in Medieval times, requiring additional farmland. It was at this point that drainage commenced of a landscape characterized until then by abundant standing water such as moors and wetlands. On the other hand, the large-scale regulation of rivers and streams only began in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Lower Austria was quick to develop an awareness of its history and prehistory. In 1970, the Museum of Prehistory was opened in the castle of Asparn an der Zaya, Mistelbach, 22 km NE of Großmugl. It is one of the most important of its kind in Europe. It includes an archaeological open-air exhibition with life-sized reconstructions of buildings from the Neolithic through to the Iron Age, and an artefact collection that, since the addition of Early Medieval objects in 2014, spans 40,000 years.

The Großmugl Oasis is a generic prototype for a ’Starlight Oasis‘. It was established at an existing observing site of the Kuffner-Sternwarte Society following the adoption in 2007 of the La Palma Declaration for the Right to Starlight both by the Society and by the community of Großmugl. While the area has been used intensively for agriculture and forestry throughout many millennia, one of Europe’s first bat censuses was undertaken in Großmugl and six Natura 2000 areas are now established in the Weinviertel, one overlapping with the proposed buffer zone.

 

Justification for inscription

Comparative analysis 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 10
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-11-23 11:23:01
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

At Großmugl the night sky quality is not exceptional per se, but does stand out strongly, if not uniquely, given its proximity to a city with a population (in the metropolitan area) of some 2.4 million people. Around other cities, as well as in other directions from Vienna, much larger distances (by an estimated factor of 2-5) are generally prerequisite for a sky and night-time environment of comparable quality. The designation as a ’starlight oasis‘ indicates this combination of night-sky quality and ease of human accessibility. The Starlight Reserve document suggests, as a prototype for a Starlight Oasis (see Starlight Reserve Concept, pp. 13-15), the skies of inhabited areas, of small villages reasonably free from light pollution. That implies access to the Milky Way in the better cases and roughly reflects the pre-light-pollution situation of the 1960s when the Milky Way still could be seen from cities with more than a million inhabitants.

Key indicators of night-sky quality are as follows.

  1. The brightness of the location. Excessive illumination by light pollution threatens the integrity of sky and landscape.
  2. The irradiance—energy flux per unit area (in our case) on the ground and through a horizontal surface. This is relevant for the environment, flora and fauna, as well as for humans at night when their perception is naturally in mesopic or scotopic mode.
  3. Night-sky emission, natural and artificial. This is typically measured towards the zenith. The light emission per unit area of sky—more precisely per unit solid angle—is often expressed in relation to the magnitude of stars and thus given in magnitudes per square arc-second (mag/″²).
  4. The emission of artificial light from the area towards the zenith as seen from satellites. This is a proxy for the artificial light input into the atmosphere (although it actually uses the fraction of the light that escapes directly into space, and so is not a factor degrading the sky quality for an observer on the ground, who is presumably mostly effected by light emitted near the horizontal).

Proximity, as far as artificial sky brightness is concerned, is usually discussed in the context of empirical rules of thumb based on city-population and distance. Typically, 100 km is a plausible distance to get to a fairly good sky with stars visible down to magnitude 6 (for a conspicuous Milky Way and thousands of stars—this value is often quoted as the limit of visibility for naked eye stars) or 7 (a near-natural sky with about three times more stars/less sky brightness) for a city population of 1 million. Vienna, the 9th largest city in the European Union, has a population of about 1.7 million (2.4 million in the metropolitan area).

Großmugl, at 33 km from the city centre, provides a weather-robust, conspicuous and impressive Milky Way. A visual limiting magnitude beyond 6 is typical for moonless nights. Hand-held sky-quality meter (SQM)-measurements yield 21.15 mag/″² in the core zone and around 21 mag/″² through most of the buffer-zone. For comparison, observatory skies are measured around 21.6 with significant natural variations (Patat 2004).

A pioneering study of the large-scale distribution of sky brightness around the city of Perth, Western Australia (Biggs et al. 2012) gives 20.5 mag/″² at 30 km from the central business district in the least light-polluted northeasterly direction, which is also located behind a mountain range. Given (i) the differences in climate and consequently the natural variability in extinction, (ii) the fact that Perth is one of the most isolated cities in the world and thus there is no contribution from ’neighbouring‘ cities, (iii) the reduced airglow in Perth due to its lower magnetic latitude, (iv) the fact that measurements in Perth were taken at solar minimum, and (v) that the metropolitan population of Perth is 1.7 million compared with Vienna’s 2.4 million, we can be very confident that the sky quality near the zenith around Großmugl is significantly better than around Perth, by at least 0.5 magnitudes. In addition, coastal extinction (not measured in the Perth study) is expected to decrease the natural sky brightness in low light-pollution environments, as compared to the continental Großmugl site, at an elevation of 300 m.

<strong>Fig. 4: </strong>Moonrise at Großmugl lar

Fig. 4: Moonrise at Großmugl large tumulus. Note the reddened moon, coloured clouds and blue sky with stars (Cassiopeia and Pegasus). The colours of the moon physically are the colours of the sun, with the same spectrum and the same scattering: the moonlit night sky is as blue as during the day with the same shadow-casting. The unique moonshine appearance is created by the human eye in mesopic (twilight) mode, which perceives bluish colour tones and hard pitch-black shadows. Photograph: Norbert Fiala (kuffner-sternwarte.at)

 

State of conservation and factors affecting the property

Present state of conservation 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 4
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-11-23 11:49:46
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

An assessment of the ’non-astronomical‘ state of conservation of the archaeological sites within the Starlight Oasis is beyond the scope of this text, except to say that the large tumulus is well preserved and unopened.

Under median sky conditions on moonless nights there is a dependable visual limiting magnitude beyond 6, and the Milky Way is impressive, although light pollution from Vienna is noticeable.

 

Factors affecting the property 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 6
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-11-23 11:51:12
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Developmental pressures

  • The Vienna-Prague road near the west end of the buffer-zone.
  • City-dwellers from Vienna: retirement sub-urbanization?
  • The possible further development of wind farms.

Environmental pressures

The development of the Vienna-light-dome.

Natural disasters and risk preparedness

A new flash-flood management system was installed in 2010.

Visitor/tourism pressures

There are about 3000 visitors per year to events in the area. The site itself is open access and so the actual number of visitors is likely to be significantly greater.

No. of inhabitants

617 people live in the core zone (mostly in the village of Großmugl); there are a few thousand inhabitants in the buffer zone.

 

Protection and management

Ownership 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 3
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-11 12:45:52
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

The area around the large tumulus is owned by the Erzdiözese Wien (Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna) and leased to the community of Großmugl. The remainder of the core and buffer zones is under mixed ownership.

 

Protective designation 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 3
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-11 12:47:49
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

The tumuli, Steinabrunn and Herzogbirbaum circular ditched enclosures, and various other archeological sites are protected historic monuments. The Starlight Declaration and Starlight Reserve document are endorsed by the community of Großmugl.

 

Means of implementing protective measures 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 3
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-11 12:49:47
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

A construction codex has imposed a ’no-building zone‘ around the large tumulus, while federal monument protection applies to the prehistoric sites (and other monuments in the area). State light-pollution laws, in preparation, include sections on conservation areas. The protection of the core zone is managed by the community of Großmugl.

 

Existing plans 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 3
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-11 12:53:26
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Plans by the Keltenberg Observatory include an infrastructure extension for night-sky observation, thematic pathways, a small planetarium, visitor management, and the extension of a public observatory in the village.

 

Sources of expertise and training 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 4
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-11 13:05:34
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Sources of astronomical expertise and training include

  • Institute for Astronomy, University of Vienna (didactics of astronomy education for teachers);
  • the Kuffner-Sternwarte Society (amateur and professional astronomers and physicists);
  • the Linzer Astronomische Gemeinschaft;
  • Sternfreunde Steyr;
  • Hochbärneck Observatory; and
  • the Keltenberg Observatory.

The MAMUZ Museum Mistelbach at MAMUZ Castle, Asparn an der Zaya, provides archaeological expertise in the Großmugl area.

 

Visitor facilities and infrastructure 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 3
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-11 13:09:37
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

The Großmugl community assembly room has facilities and a capacity of 200. Restaurant Schillinger has a lecture/event room with a capacity of 100 that acts as an information base and contact point. The Austrian ’rights of way‘ law guarantees public access throughout the core and buffer zones.

 

Monitoring

Indicators for measuring state of conservation 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 5
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-05-11 13:30:17
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

The key indicators are:

  • Illumination levels and total radiation.
  • Complementary background sky brightness or near zenithal average sky brightness (SQM-measurements) and all-sky brightness distribution.
  • An air-quality related value (visibility versus haze):
    • *total aerosol optical depth
    • *mass fraction of particulate matter with respect to an upper size limit specified by µm
    • *ozone (health)

Continuous monitoring of day and night total radiation is carried out by the Kuffner-Sternwarte Society and the Großmugl Starlight Task Force of the Großmugl Community Council, chaired by the mayor of Großmugl.

The sky quality at Großmugl and the development of the Vienna light-dome is continuously monitored by a network of Lightmeters, which permits control of the sky quality and an assessment of protective measures. The sky quality above Großmugl itself has been continuously monitored since October 2009 by measuring the horizontal illumination and total radiation using a Lightmeter on the roof of the Schillinger Inn inside the village. There are public street-lights in the village, which is the largest in the core zone, and thus the sky quality at other locations (such as around the large tumulus) will be slightly better due to the complete absence of lights.

 

Documentation

Bibliography 
  • InfoTheme: ‘Windows to the universe’: Starlight, dark-sky areas and observatory sites
    Entity: 87
    Subentity: 3
    Version: 4
    Status: PUB
    Date: 2017-11-23 12:02:38
    Author(s): Günther Wuchterl

Cited publications

Biggs, J.D., Fouché, T., Bilki, F. and Zadnik, M.G., 2012. Measuring and mapping the night sky brightness of Perth, Western Australia. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 421, 1450-1464.

Patat, F., 2004. UBVRI night sky brightness during sunspot maximum at ESO Paranal. Astronomy and Astrophysics 400, 1183-1198.

Other relevant publication

Lauermann, E. (ed.), 2003. Geheimnisse einer Landschaft - Großmugl. Marktgemeinde Großmugl in collaboration with Archäologie-Vernetzung Weinviertel. Peter Pfeifer, Haugsdorf.

 

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