The designation makes the 801,000-acre (324,153-hectare) West Texas park, which borders the Rio Grande, one of only 10 places on the International Dark Sky Park list. It is one of only six at the Gold Tier level. Parks on the list have especially dark night skies and minimal light pollution, making stargazing easier.

Big Bend was found to have the darkest measured skies in the lower 48 states, and is now the largest park in the world with the Dark Sky designation. For those who seek to protect the park, the news comes as a welcome step forward.

The designation “acknowledges how important the dark sky is. There a lot of times light pollution isn’t considered a form of pollution, but