Iceland shuts off lights for star gazing

REYKJAVIK, Sept 28 (Reuters Life!) - Iceland's capital and several towns plunged into darkness on Thursday as street lights were turned off for people to get a better view of the night sky.
Even though rain and clouds dimmed the view for the thousands of people who went out star gazing, the man who thought up the event was happy.

"All the streets lights are off, we can see a few stars," said writer Andri Snaer Magnason, speaking by telephone from the darkened streets of downtown Reykjavik, Iceland's capital and home to about 200,000 people.

"I would have liked to have a completely clear sky, but you can't have everything. But it was nice," he added.

Magnason got the idea as a way to launch a film festival on the north Atlantic island, but said he had dreamt for years of doing such a thing.

An astronomer gave a commentary on national radio on what people could see in the half hour the lights were out.

Reykjavik police superintendent Karl Valsson told Reuters that no trouble had been reported during the event, which the authorities had used as a kind of exercise for what would happen in the event of a power and light failure.

"It is not total darkness, but there is a huge difference (from when the lights are on)," he added. "I think it is quite interesting and we in the police supported it."