2.2. Astrotourism professionals
Astrotourism, broadly defined, is a form of sustainable tourism that engages clients in activities related to stargazing and astronomy, including terrestrial night-sky phenomena such as aurora watching. Usually classified alongside other forms of “ecotourism” or “green tourism”, astrotourism has as its object the resource of the night sky, and it is usually pursued in places with relatively little light pollution. It offers participants content outside the realm of more traditional, destination-based tourism and fuses elements of outdoor/adventure tourism with resort and amenity activities.
There is little to date in the tourism and hospitality literature studying astrotourism, but limited evidence suggests great growth and revenue potential.[1] It is hypothesized that astrotourism can drive rural economic development, especially in economically depressed regions where former industries have departed as a result of globalization, natural resource exhaustion and other influences. The astrotourism field itself remains nascent despite growing public interest; as an indicator, no professional organization of astrotourism operators has yet emerged. It is not known how many people in the world are employed in astrotourism, but anecdotally we understand this number to be far fewer than those who engage in amateur astronomy or astrophotography as avocations.
In order to solicit opinions about the impacts of large satellite constellations on the work of astrotourism professionals, we contacted individuals in our professional networks with whom we have had previous communications about their work. For this report, we conducted interviews with five people, all of whom agreed to be identified by name and affiliation:
- Roy Alexander (AstroVentures CIC and Battlesteads Dark Sky Observatory, UK)
- Etta Danemann (Visit Dark Skies, Germany)
- Sabine Frank (Verein Sternenpark Rhön e.V., Germany)
- Catherine Johns (Kielder Observatory, UK)
- Samuel Singer (Wyoming Stargazing, US)
In their respective roles, their work ranges from those who provide nighttime star tours on a freelance basis to those who operate small private observatories open to the public. The respondents have work experience in astrotourism ranging from eight to 15 years. They work in astrotourism on a part-time or full-time basis, showing that while for some it has become their primary means of earning a living, others are working in this space in a way that supplements their income or engages their interests beyond their main paid jobs. While some own astrotourism businesses that employ other people, others are either sole proprietors or work essentially as freelancers. Business owners employ between two and 12 individuals on a full-time basis, and have help from others who are employed part-time, are selfemployed, or serve in a volunteer capacity.
The respondents offer a wide array of astrotourism products and services to their clients. Most provide some kind of in-person "star tours," telescope viewing, or comparable kinds of programming. Some
- ↑ For recent case studies, see, e.g., Mitchell, D., & Gallaway, T. (2019). Dark sky tourism: economic impacts on the Colorado Plateau Economy, USA. Tourism Review, 74(4), 930–942. https://doi.org/10.1108/tr-10-2018-0146 and Rodrigues, A. L. O., Rodrigues, A. & Peroff, D. M. (2014). The Sky and Sustainable Tourism Development: A Case Study of a Dark Sky Reserve Implementation in Alqueva. International Journal of Tourism Research, 17(3), 292. https://doi.org/10.1002/jtr.1987.
