Owachomo Bridge and the Milky Way. (Image credit: Jamie Carter) A few years ago, a friend came back from Jordan in September and told me I'd got it wrong. "I went to that desert you told me about but I didn't see many stars," he said. This was awkward. I'd been very specific. Wadi Rum is one of the best places on Earth for stargazing and to see the Milky Way — vast, dry, high and almost completely free of light pollution. I'd painted a picture of it: a river of starlight arching over the desert. "I mean, there were stars," he added. "But no Milky Way . Just a really bright moon." And there it was. He hadn't gone to the wrong place. He hadn't gone in the wrong season — September is an ideal time to see the Milky Way. He'd gone during the "wrong" moon phase. Humans adore the full moon , but few appreciate how it changes the rest of the night sky. It's nature's biggest light polluter.…