2026 Upper Peninsula Dark Sky Festival
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Limit: 50 tickets
Last day to purchase tickets: April 12th
The Keweenaw Mountain Lodge, the headquarters for the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park, is hosting its fourth annual event around International Dark Sky Week: The Upper Peninsula Dark Sky Festival. DarkSky International (formerly known as, the International Dark-Sky Association) encourages people worldwide to discover the night during International Dark Sky Week. This annual week-long event aims to raise awareness about the negative impacts of light pollution, the solutions that exist and simultaneously celebrate the night.
The 2026 event will be held over April 16th, 17th, and 18th, and provides three days / nights of learning. Events and workshops will be hosted at the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge, headquarters for the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park.
The event is intended for all ages of dark sky enthusiasts. The evening event on Thursday allows guests to check into their accommodations, have a meal and then take in the presentation. Friday and Saturday’s events in the afternoon allow guests to have a morning adventure and an afternoon and evening of learning.
Schedule
Below is the schedule for the festival (last updated March 15, 2026, schedule is subject change):
Thursday, April 16th
- 6:00pm: Welcome / Opening Remarks (John Mueller, KML Team – Keweenaw Dark Sky Park & Amber Harrison, DarkSky International – Virtually)
- 8:00pm: Dark Sky Photography Workshop (Nate Bett)
- Evening: Stargazing
Friday, April 17th
- 10:00am: Dark Sky Watercolor Workshop, with Lindsey Naylor (limited to 20 people — call 906-289-4403 ext 4 to sign up)
- 12:00pm: Rustic and Worldly Lunch (included in your festival ticket purchase)
- 1:00pm: Postcards from the Universe: 2025-2026 via NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day (Robert Nemiroff)
- 3:30pm: Stonehenge: History and Mystery (Dave Falkner)
- 6:00pm: Dinner (on your own, see food options)
- 8:00pm: Travis Novitsky
- Evening: Stargazing
Saturday, April 18th
- 9:00am: Open Skies Tour (limited to 24 people – call 906-289-4403 ext 4 to sign up) [ sponsored by Visit Keweenaw ] — bus leaves the Lodge at 8:30am
- 12:00pm: Rustic and Worldly Lunch (included in your festival ticket purchase)
- 1:00pm: Geomagnetic Storm Effects (“Astro” Bob King)
- 3:00pm: In Pursuit of the Northern Lights: Painted Nights in the Darkest Parts of the World (Melissa Kalein)
- 4:30pm: Leveraging Economic Incentives for Darker Skies (Jamie Westfall)
- 6:00pm: Dinner (on your own, see food options)
- 8:00pm: Deep Sky Astrophotography under Dark Skies (Ogetay Kayali)
- Evening: Stargazing
Location
The festival will be held at the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge, the headquarters of the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park.
Keweenaw Mountain Lodge
14252 US Hwy 41
Copper Harbor, Michigan 49918
Price
Tickets for the festival are $250 / person + tax. Tickets include admission to all presentations and the lunch on Friday and Saturday. A maximum of 50 tickets will be sold. The last day to purchase tickets is April 12, 2026.
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Presentation Topics and Speaker Bios
Below is the list of speakers, with their bios and presentation topics. The list is sorted by last name of the speaker.
Nate Bett
Photographer and Educator
Presentation Topic: Dark Sky Photography Workshop
Join photographer Nate Bett for a comprehensive and informative session on night sky photography. Attendees will learn all the basics of night sky photography as well as instruction on image editing and processing using Adobe Lightroom Classic, and Photoshop as well as stacking software such as Starry landscape stacker. Learn more about the best gear to use and how to use it to get the night sky shot’s that you’ve always wanted.
About Nate
Nathan Bett is a photographer and educator in Hancock Michigan. Although originally from Marquette, Michigan, “Nate” relocated several years ago to Hancock from New York City, where he taught at the City University Of New York, and represented a major camera manufacturer as a technical specialist in photography. He now spends his time indulging in the over abundance of natural beauty in his native UP and spending excesses of time outdoors with his family. Nathan maintains a passion for photography and the outdoors that he delights in sharing with students. His work can be viewed at nathanbett.com and @natebett and @artmonstermedia on Instagram.
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Dave Falkner
NASA Solar System Ambassador
Presentation Topic: Stonehenge: History and Mystery
Stonehenge is a massive, prehistoric stone monument in southern England, constructed by a civilization with no written communication and only primitive tools. Through over a century of archaeological study, scientists have developed theories on how these ancient people transported and erected the mammoth stones, as well as how the site was used. Dave will walk you through the journey of discovery regarding the monument’s construction and uncover some of the enduring mysteries of Stonehenge.
About Dave
Dave has been a lifelong amateur astronomer, a passion that began as a pre-teen at the Holcomb Planetarium in Indianapolis. After retiring from the US Navy, Dave settled in Minnesota and became an active member of the Minnesota Astronomical Society (MAS), serving as President (2011–2014, 2019–2020) and Secretary (2023–2024). As a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador, he frequently conducts astronomical outreach at libraries, nature centers, and schools. Dave has also taught introductory astronomy at a local community college and is the author of three books: The Stories of Astronomers and Their Stars and two editions of Mythology of the Night Sky.
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Amber Harrison
Dark Sky Places Program Manager at DarkSky International
Presentation Topic: Opening Remarks and Status of Dark Sky Places Program
Amber will join us virtually to discuss the status of the DarkSky International’s places program.
About Amber
Amber is responsible for the Dark Sky Places Program at DarkSky International. Prior to joining DarkSky International, she was a park ranger and interpreter at Big Bend Ranch State Park — the largest, most remote, and darkest park in Texas. She completed successful applications to the International Dark Sky Places program for public lands in the Big Bend of West Texas and is active in dark sky advocacy throughout the region. Her focus on dark sky conservation developed during her time as a Ranger, where she incorporated dark sky education in her programming and community engagement to raise awareness about the importance of natural dark skies on the natural world and the human experience.
Amber grew up in Wichita, Kansas, where she spent most of her time riding and caring for horses. She received her undergraduate and master’s degrees in Anthropology with a focus on bioarchaeology at Wichita State University.
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Melissa Kaelin
Author and Founder of the Michigan Aurora Chasers
Presentation Topic: In Pursuit of the Northern Lights: Painted Nights in the Darkest Parts of the World
Melissa will take you on a journey around the world, after catching Northern Lights in Alaska, Iceland, Canada’s Northwest Territories, Finland, and Norway — while chasing the Aurora at sea aboard a Hurtigruten ship. After three separate excursions to the Arctic Circle, she will illustrate what it’s like to chase painted skies in the northernmost corners of the world, while sharing dark sky advice and useful tips that can help you view the Aurora in any location.
About Melissa
Melissa F. Kaelin devotes her time as an aurora guide, a community leader and an author. Through guided chases, online tutorials, public talks and her book, she has led thousands of people to experience the Northern Lights for the first time. Author of “Beyond the 45th Parallel: The Beginner’s Guide to Chasing Aurora”, she loves sharing tools and techniques to help you catch the aurora in your backyard. She founded the Michigan Aurora Chasers, co-founded the Aurora Summit, and co-hosted the inaugural GLAD Jam in Houghton, MI. She has volunteered for the SolarMax Mission to study aurora from space, she was a NASA Social Media Ambassador, and she leads international tours for the University of Michigan Alumni Association, among many other pursuits.
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Ogetay Kayali
Deep Space Photographer and Michigan Technological University Graduate Student
Presentation Topic: Deep Sky Astrophotography under Dark Skies
Ogetay will talk about how remote sites under dark skies allow astrophotography to grow at an accelerating speed and show how he takes his award-winning photos. His presentation will include a beginner-friendly introduction to deep sky astrophotography with only telescopes and cameras, as well as advanced techniques.
About Ogetay
Ogetay is a PhD Candidate in Astrophysics at Michigan Tech and works for NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day. He has been doing public outreach and science communication for over 10 years, founded a popular science platform with nearly 10 volunteers that became a top-visited science platform in Turkey, and has written over 300 popular science articles and 70+ video scripts for a YouTube channel that reached over 50M views. His astrophotography has received recognition with awards by Astrobin (top astrophotography platform) — with 1 image of the day, 6 Top Picks, and 8 Top Pick Nominations. In addition, has had one of his photos on the cover of ScopeTrader magazine’s, the November 2024 issue.
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“Astro” Bob King
Author and Educator
Presentation Topic: Geomagnetic Storm Effects
[ info to be posted closer to the date of the festival ]
About AstroBob
Bob King fell in love with the night sky and astronomy when he was a kid and loves to share his passion with people of all ages through teaching and public observing. He’s a long-time member of the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO), a community educator and writes for Sky & Telescope’s magazine and website. Bob also pens the long-time blog Astro Bob he started in 2008 and shares news of current sky events on WTIP-FM (Grand Marais) and The North 103.3 FM (Duluth).
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John Mueller
KML Team – Keweenaw Dark Sky Park
Presentation Topic: Welcome Remarks and the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park
John will provide opening remarks and welcome, talk about the progress of the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park and have a Q&A session regarding the DarkSky International’s places program.
About John
John is the chief lead at the Lodge, and is heavily involved with the staff as it relates to operations and strategy of the resort. He led the application process for the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park, and is closely involved with and knowledgeable of the dark sky park.
Previously, John was a professor at St. Edwards University, focusing on innovation and entrepreneurship (entrepreneurial finance). Before his time at St. Edward’s, he was a faculty member at Fresno State and Western Michigan University. He finished his PhD in Entrepreneurship at the University of Louisville. He is a native of Austin, Texas, and has lived in many cool places around the world.
John has started several companies, and worked as an employee in others. He is the founder of Keweenaw Resort, LLC, which owns the Lodge.
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Lindsey Naylor
Artist and Graphic Designer
Presentation Topic: A Dark Sky Watercolor Workshop
Lindsey will guide attendees through the process of creating their own galaxy watercolor painting. She will demonstrate basic watercolor technique, and then show how to create likenesses of the milky way and northern lights. You will have the opportunity to practice before creating your painting, with plenty of supplies to create another one if you wish. All materials are provided and no watercolor experience necessary.
About Lindsey
Lindsey, aka Home Squirrel, is an independent artist based in Marquette, Michigan. She applies her hand-drawn style to a variety of media, including murals, merch, packaging, branding, and patterns.
She has been making art since childhood, and doing professional graphic design since 2011. She enjoys the tactile experience of creating, and marries the handmade techniques with the latest design technology. From custom lettering to hand-drawn illustration, the work she makes has a human, imperfect, and unique quality. This humanness can spark a connection to the viewer. Through using the latest design technology in tandem with handmade techniques, she creates effective and beautiful works that resonate with the intended audience.
When she is not designing or drawing, you can find her hiking in the woods with her dog Moose, getting lost in a fantasy book, or telling her houseplants they are strong and beautiful.
Note: She is the artist that created the Lodge’s WPA-era four-season posters.
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Robert Nemiroff
Co-creator of Astronomy Picture of the Day, Astrophysicist and Professor of Physics at Michigan Technological University
Presentation Topic: Postcards from the Universe: 2025-2026 via NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day
Some of the coolest images and videos from the popular NASA science website Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD: apod.nasa.gov) that appeared during 2025 and 2026 will be presented. The science and stories behind these images will be discussed. The images not only include the best of the Hubble and Webb space telescope, but also images taken from dark skies around the world. Topics include nebulae, aurorae, galaxies, the distant universe, the nearby Solar System, and more.
About Robert
Robert J. Nemiroff is a Professor of Physics at Michigan Technological University in Houghton, Michigan. He holds a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania and is a Fellow of the American Physical Society. Dr. Nemiroff is perhaps best known as a creator, writer, and editor for one of NASA’s most popular science websites: the Astronomy Picture of the Day. Dr. Nemiroff’s new book, “Faster than Light, How Your Shadow Can Do It but You Can’t”, is available from Amazon.
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Travis Novitsky
Artist and Photographer
Presentation Topic:
[ info to be posted closer to the date of the festival ]
About Travis
Travis is a proud member and lifelong resident of the Grand Portage Anishinaabe Nation in northeast Minnesota, He has been photographing the woods and waters of the north shore of Lake Superior for more than 35 years. He is a self-taught nature and wildlife photographer whose work focuses primarily on his ancestral homelands in Minnesota.
Travis specializes in images of nature and wildlife, but his favorite subject by far is the night sky. He devotes countless hours to capturing images of star-filled skies and the Aurora Borealis (northern lights).
He served as Co-Producer and Narrator of Northern Nights, Starry Skies, with his creative work featured extensively in the film. He is also the photographer for the book Spirits Dancing – The Night Sky, Indigenous Knowledge & Cultural Connections to the Cosmos (text written by Annette S. Lee).
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Jamie Westfall
Park Manager of The Headlands Dark Sky Park
Presentation Topic: Leveraging Economic Incentives for Darker Skies
Jamie will talk about strategies that dark sky enthusiasts in areas with little light pollution can use to collaborate with business leaders, which encourages them to employ more environmentally considerate lighting solutions for their operations.
About Jamie
Jamie is the Park Manager for Headlands International Dark Sky Park, as well as two other Emmet County Parks in Mackinaw City, Michigan. She is a Dark Sky Advocate with Dark Sky International, and a Certified Parks and Recreation Professional. She is a self-proclaimed “parks dork,” and recreation enthusiast.
Jamie’s favorite thing about working at the Headlands has been teaming up with astronomers, learning about dark sky conservation, and actively participating in the dark sky protection movement within the parks and recreation industry.
Rustic and Worldly Lunches
Each ticket to the festival includes two rustic worldly lunches; one on Friday and one on Saturday. When purchasing your ticket please state if you prefer the lunch with meat or the vegetarian option. Please note that there are no substitutions, and the menu is subject to change as we get closer to the event based upon access to ingredients.
Friday Lunch Menu (served at 12pm)
Chicken fajitas with veggies and creamy chipotle sauce. Served with sautéed corn and onion and a side of Spanish rice and a cookie. (Mexican-influence)
– or –
Roasted eggplant dressed in lemon and olive oil with sautéed vegetables on a wrap. Served with garlic-lemon-cilantro potato and a cookie. (Lebanese-influence)
Saturday Lunch Menu (served at 12pm)
Beef Kafta Wrap with lettuce, tomato, pickled red onion and Hummus spread. Served with a side salad and a cookie. (Lebanese-influence)
– or –
Asian Buddha Bowl (Rice, broccoli, carrots, bell peppers, cucumber, tofu) with peanut butter dressing. Served with vegetarian samosa and a cookie. (Indian-influence)
Lodging
The dark sky park is in a remote area, so it is important for you to plan where you are going to stay before traveling. The following options are available for lodging in the area:
- Aqua Cabins at Mt. Bohemia (Lac La Belle)
- Brockway Inn (Copper Harbor)
- Da Beach Cabin (Lac La Belle)
- Dapple-Gray Bed & Breakfast (Copper Harbor)
- Eagle Harbor Inn (Eagle Harbor)
- Fitzgerald’s (Eagle River)
- Keweenaw Mountain Lodge (host)
- Mariner North (Copper Harbor)
- Trails End Campground (Copper Harbor)
[ to see more Lodging options, go to Visit Keweenaw ]
Food
The Keweenaw Mountain Lodge / Keweenaw Dark Sky Park is in a remote area, so it is important for you to plan where you are going to eat before traveling. The following options are available for food in the area:
- Eagle Harbor Inn (Eagle Harbor)
- Fitzgerald’s (Eagle River)
- Glacia Tavern (Mohawk)
- Keweenaw Mountain Lodge (host) – see the Lodge’s dinner options during the festival (which you reserve in advance, pay for separate from the tickets)
- Mariner North (Copper Harbor)
[ Purchase Tickets ]
Limit: 50 tickets | $250 per ticket + tax
Press Releases
- Full Speaker Lineup and Schedule announced for the Fourth Annual Upper Peninsula Dark Sky Festival (March 11, 2026)
- The Fourth-annual Upper Peninsula Dark Sky Festival, hosted at the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge (January 30, 2026)