Four days of ‘stellar’ astrotourism events planned at Sirru Fen Fushi – Private Lagoon Resort
Santa is not the only special arrival expected at Sirru Fen Fushi – Private Lagoon Resort, Maldives, this Christmas. Two guest speakers from NASA (who, like Santa, are also pretty familiar with flying through the air) will be arriving just in time for the holidays too. NASA analog astronaut, Anisa Qureshi, and retired NASA pilot, Dominic A.Antonelli, will arrive at the Shaviyani Atoll resort on December 24.
They’ll be hosting four consecutive days of special events over Christmas, until December 27. With its remote location, Sirru Fen Fushi is undisturbed by light pollution from neighboring islands or domestic airports. This makes it one of the few destinations in the Maldives offering guests a genuinely dark night sky.
The fact it’s unique to find a truly dark night sky in the Maldives may be surprising to some. But many resorts in the Maldives suffer from the glare of light pollution caused by street lights or commerce from neighbouring islands. Some resorts even create too much of their own light pollution by not mitigating the artificial lights thrown up into the sky from their restaurants, or from uplights on pathways.
The darkness of the skies above Sirru Fen Fushi makes it a dream destination for astronomy enthusiasts. So the five-star resort teamed up with SpaceCat Astrotourism to create a series of events this festive season, beginning with a special Meet & Greet on December 24 at the resort’s Christmas Cocktail Party. Guests will have the incredible opportunity to mingle with Dominic, veteran NASA space shuttle pilot, and Anisa, analog astronaut/content creator @likeanastro.
The excitement continues on Christmas Day (December 25), when Dominic will share his breathtaking perspective of Earth from space in a talk, Seeing Home from Space. It’ll offer rare insights into how gazing back at our blue planet transforms one’s understanding of home and humanity.
Then on Boxing Day (December 26) Qureshi will shed light on the rigorous training and exploration involved in preparing for the challenges of space with her talk, My Analog Astronaut Mission Experience. That evening, Anisa will also lead a hands-on stargazing experience for guests, Beyond Exploration. Participants will be guided through constellations and cosmic wonders while reflecting on humanity’s enduring quest to explore the unknown.
The series of events culminate on December 27, when Dominic will deliver another captivating talk, Journey of a Space Shuttle Pilot. Guests will be able to hear about his first-hand experience of piloting the Space Shuttle and the technical marvels of human space exploration.
If you’re interested in finding out more or booking for Christmas at Sirru Fen Fushi click here.
