It’s official: Sun Valley Resort, along the border of the Central Idaho Dark Sky Reserve, has been certified as America’s first Dark Sky-approved resort destination. This recognition comes by way of the DarkSky Approved Lodging & Resorts Program by DarkSky International.

Property-wide initiatives and efforts include habitat protection and responsible outdoor lighting to reduce light pollution and create favorable conditions for viewing the sparkling night sky in all its wonder.

Sun Valley Resort also offers public education to inform guests and others about the impacts of light pollution, and its negative — and even fatal — effects on life, from birds, insects and amphibians to plants and mammals. Disruption of ecosystems has a ripple-down effect that influences how predators and prey navigate the world, and how species survive.

Cases in point: hatchling loggerhead sea turtles that respond to artificial lights created by humans, rather than moving toward the ocean horizon; and migratory birds that move toward brightly lit urban areas instead of staying on course.

Plans at Sun Valley Resort are underway to develop additional dark sky programming and starwatching opportunities. Meanwhile, guests and visitors to the resort can turn their gazes toward the constellations at Bald Mountain Summit (Roundhouse), where views are not impeded by lights in the valley; and at Dollar Mountain Lodge, offering expansive views for night viewing with the naked eye.

At Sun Valley Resort Village, viewing areas include Sun Valley Pavilion Lawn, Whitecloud Trail System and Hemingway Memorial area. About 30 miles north from the resort itself, Galena Summit — positioned with the Central Idaho Dark Sky Reserve — is widely regarded as one of the darkest, stariest locations in this region.