Light pollution is erasing the stars in the sky--here's why we should care

[Judi Lynn]

The loss of dark skies affects both scientists and everyday people.

BY CHRIS IMPEY AND CONNIE WALKER / THE CONVERSATION | PUBLISHED FEB 24, 2023 6:00 PM EST



We are two astronomers who depend on dark night skies to do our research. For decades, astronomers have been building telescopes in the darkest places on Earth to avoid light pollution.

Today, most people live in cities or suburbs that needlessly shine light into the sky at night, dramatically reducing the visibility of stars. Satellite data suggests that light pollution over North America and Europe has remained constant or has slightly decreased over the last decade, while increasing in other parts of the world, such as Africa, Asia and South America. However, satellites miss the blue light of LEDs, which are commonly used for outdoor lighting – resulting in an underestimate of light pollution.

An international citizen science project called Globe at Night aims to measure how everyday people’s view of the sky is changing.
Relying on citizen scientists makes it much easier to take multiple measurements of the night sky over time from many different places.

To provide data to the project, volunteers enter the date and time, their location and local weather conditions into an online reporting page anytime an hour or more after sunset on certain nights each month. The page then shows eight panels, each displaying a constellation visible at that time of year – like Orion in January and February, for example. The first panel, representing a light-polluted night sky, only shows the few brightest stars. Each panel shows progressively more and fainter stars, representing darker and darker skies. The participant then matches what they see in the sky with one of the panels.

More:
https://www.popsci.com/science/light-pollution-stars-night-sky/

[MuseRider]

1. Just last night

I spotted a hint of the Milky Way for the first time in a good while.

When I bought this farm in the early 90's I would sit out at night and just look at the millions of stars up there. Now the Milky Way is almost always gone and now some of the constellations are getting dim. It makes me sick. I am still out in the country and there are a few neighbors who have those bright mercury vapor lights but they are a problem but not THE problem, the city is getting more companies to put their large distribution centers out here and of course they are coming very close to our house.

It is amazing how little light on the ground it takes to erase the stars.

Good but sad article. I fear we have far surpassed caring about this as all those who are actually helping this along own all of us and all our stuff. Comfort, history, inspiration and a life well lived for us are not their priorities.

[SledDriver]

2. cries in New Jersey