With this prestigious label, the Alpes Azur Mercantour area becomes the 14th International Dark Sky Reserve (IDSR) in the world, the 3rd in France, after the Pic du Midi de Bigorre in the Pyrenees and the Cévennes National Park, and the 1st in the Southeast region.
This distinction, awarded by the International Dark Sky Association based in the United States, recognizes an exceptional quality of the night sky and commits the areas to take actions to reduce light pollution.
The Alpes Azur Mercantour International Dark Sky Reserve covers 75 municipalities, with nearly 55,000 inhabitants. It spans nearly 2,300 km² from the Haut-Pays Grassois to the edges of the Ubaye and includes 3 core zones where more than 3,000 stars can be observed: the Mercantour National Park, the Regional Natural Reserve of Daluis Gorges, the Biological Reserve of Cheiron, and on either side of the wild Estéron River.
