Cruise Talk: Dark Skies

Cruise Talk

Cruise News

Welcome to Cruise Talk the Internet's most popular discussion forum dedicated to cruising. Stop by Cruise Talk anytime to post a message or find out what your fellow passengers and industry insiders are saying about a particular ship, cruise line or destination.

>>> Reader Reviews
>>> CruisePage.com Photo Gallery
>>> Join Our Cruise Club.

Latest News...Royal Caribbean kicked off the countdown to a new era of family vacations, officially welcoming Star of the Seas* into the family. After nearly two years of construction at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Turku, Finland, the keys to the next revolutionary Icon Class ship were officially handed over to Royal Caribbean just a few weeks ahead of its August debut in Port Canaveral...

Latest News...Oceania Cruises has taken delivery of Oceania Allura, its eighth elegant boutique ship.The 1,200-guest Oceania Allura, built at the world-renowned Fincantieri Shipyard in Genoa, is the second ship in Oceania Cruises' Allura Class and heralds the evolution of Oceania Cruises' legacy of offering culinary- and destination-immersive travel experiences. Oceania Allura follows her sister ship...

Latest News...Carnival Cruise Line’s sailings from New Orleans are delivering even more fun now that Carnival Liberty is back following a comprehensive dry dock that added new features to the ship. Carnival Liberty joins sister ship Carnival Valor, which returned to Port NOLA last month with many enhancements after a similar dry dock. The first guests to experience the ship’s new features embarked on Sunday...

More Cruise News...

my profile | register | search | faq | forum home

»	Cruise Talk » Cruising 1.0 » Dark Skies

UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!

Author

Topic: Dark Skies

Bill (OH)
First Class Passenger
Member # 5622

posted 04-11-2006 06:18 PM

I am an amateur astronomer and spend many hours under dark night skies. My 7 day cruise starts a day or two after a new moon. I would imagine that cruise ships like airliners run at least a minimal amount of runing lights for safety reasons. I can also imagine well lit night time activities. Are there any designated lights out times, or specific dark areas of a ship for stargazing?

[ 04-12-2006: Message edited by: Bill (OH) ]

Posts: 12 | From: Columbus, OH | Registered: Apr 2005 | IP: Logged

Ernst
First Class Passenger
Member # 5369

posted 04-11-2006 06:37 PM

Sadly a lot of lines do not care about this utmost important topic.

Usually the 'front' of a ship is dark to facilitate navigation - but this is also not 100% true anymore.
People who designed ships recently did a really bad, dearless job concerning deck ilumination.

P.S.: The Sea Cloud was quite impressive in this respect - standing on the monkey island and watching the masts moving against the stars was fantastic. Nevertheless, altough better than most other ships still not complete darkness. (I know, I repeat to mention the Sea Cloud - but it REALLY was better )

[ 04-11-2006: Message edited by: Ernst ]

Posts: 9746 | From: Eindhoven | Registered: Jan 2005 | IP: Logged

Malcolm @ cruisepage
Cruise Director
Member # 301

posted 04-24-2006 06:56 AM

Most ships are lit up like christmas trees all night, although as Ernst has said, the bow will be dark if you can get near it. Some ships you can others it is not so easy.

Posts: 19210 | From: Essex (Just Outside London) | Registered: A Long Time Ago! | IP: Logged

Linerrich
First Class Passenger
Member # 4864

posted 04-24-2006 08:12 AM

I'm reminded of a cruise I took aboard Paquet's S.S. RHAPSODY in March, 1986, during the last appearance of Halley's Comet. There was a guest lecturer on astronomy for the cruise, and on one designated night the Captain put out the ship's lights on the uppermost and forward decks, so that people could gather and see the comet better, with the lecturer giving interpretation. Still difficult to see the comet (which was faint on its last visit) but we did get to see the Southern Cross on the horizon, which I never thought was possible from the Caribbean!

Rich

Posts: 4210 | From: Miami, FL | Registered: Jul 2004 | IP: Logged

desirod7
First Class Passenger
Member # 1626

posted 04-24-2006 10:03 PM

http://www.darksky.org/

For more info.

There is a big movement to keep night illumination focused on the ground and not up into the heavans.

Municipalites with space observatories have very strict codes.

Street Lamps are categorized as non-cutoff, semi-cutoff, and full cutoff just for that purpose.

Example:
The globes we see on the ships are non cutoff, the side arms that illuminate the side of the ship and wake below are full cutoff.

Posts: 5727 | From: Philadelphia, Pa [home of the SS United States] | Registered: Oct 2000 | IP: Logged

jeffrossatsea
First Class Passenger
Member # 2962

posted 04-30-2006 07:57 PM

if your going on any of the voyager class RCI ships....you can sit on the bow and stare up into the sky to see the billion stars above....barely any lights due to the bridge behind.....jeff

Posts: 1118 | From: vancouver | Registered: Apr 2002 | IP: Logged

Ernst
First Class Passenger
Member # 5369

posted 04-30-2006 08:09 PM

This is certainly one of the nice aspects of the Voyager, Radiance and Millenium class ships - the heliplatform at the bow which doubles as viewing area.
I heard that it is often closed?

Posts: 9746 | From: Eindhoven | Registered: Jan 2005 | IP: Logged

jeffrossatsea
First Class Passenger
Member # 2962

posted 05-02-2006 12:32 AM

only when it get's too windy....jeff

Posts: 1118 | From: vancouver | Registered: Apr 2002 | IP: Logged

All times are ET (US)

Ultimate Bulletin Board^TM 6.1.0.3

VACATION & CRUISE SPECIALS

Check out these great deals from CruisePage.com

Royal Caribbean - Bahamas Getaway from $129 per person

Description: Experience the beautiful ports of Nassau and Royal Caribbean's private island - CocoCay on a 3-night Weekend Getaway to the Bahamas. Absorb everything island life has to offer as you snorkel with the stingrays, parasail above the serene blue waters and walk the endless white sand beaches. From Miami.

Carnival - 4-Day Bahamas from $229 per person

Description: Enjoy a wonderful 3 Day cruise to the fun-loving playground of Nassau, Bahamas. Discover Nassau, the capital city as well as the cultural, commercial and financial heart of the Bahamas. Meet the Atlantic Southern Stingrays, the guardians of Blackbeard's treasure.

NCL - Bermuda - 7 Day from $499 per person

Description: What a charming little chain of islands. Walk on pink sand beaches. Swim and snorkel in turquoise seas. Take in the historical sights. They're stoically British and very quaint. Or explore the coral reefs. You can get to them by boat or propelled by fins. You pick. Freestyle Cruising doesn't tell you where to go or what to do. Sure, you can plan ahead, or decide once onboard. After all, it's your vacation. There are no deadlines or must do's.

Holland America - Eastern Caribbean from From $599 per person

Description: White sand, black sand, talcum soft or shell strewn, the beaches of the Eastern Caribbean invite you to swim, snorkel or simply relax. For shoppers, there's duty-free St. Thomas, the Straw Market in Nassau, French perfume and Dutch chocolates on St. Maarten. For history buffs, the fascinating fusion of Caribbean, Latin and European cultures. For everyone, a day spent on HAL's award winning private island Half Moon Cay.

Celebrity - 7-Night Western Mediterranean from $549 per person

Description: For centuries people have traveled to Europe to see magnificent ruins, art treasures and natural wonders. And the best way to do so is by cruise ship. Think of it - you pack and unpack only once. No wasted time searching for hotels and negotiating train stations. Instead, you arrive at romantic ports of call relaxed, refreshed and ready to take on the world.

Holland America - Alaska from From $499 per person

Description: Sail between Vancouver and Seward, departing Sundays on the ms Statendam or ms Volendam and enjoy towering mountains, actively calving glaciers and pristine wildlife habitat. Glacier Bay and College Fjord offer two completely different glacier-viewing experiences.

More Vacation & Cruise Specials...