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Light pollution is getting worse across much of the globe, with the exception of countries like Yemen and Syria:
A study of pictures of Earth by night has revealed that artificial light is growing brighter and more extensive every year. Between 2012 and 2016, the planet's artificially lit outdoor area grew by more than 2% per year. Scientists say a "loss of night" in many countries is having negative consequences for "flora, fauna, and human well-being".
A team published the findings in the journal Science Advances. Their study used data from a Nasa satellite radiometer - a device designed specifically to measure the brightness of night-time light. It showed that changes in brightness over time varied greatly by country. Some of the world's "brightest nations", such as the US and Spain, remained the same. Most nations in South America, Africa and Asia grew brighter. [...]
- In 2016, the American Medical Association officially recognised the "detrimental effects of poorly designed, high-intensity LED lighting", saying it encouraged communities to "minimise and control blue-rich environmental lighting by using the lowest emission of blue light possible to reduce glare. The sleep-inducing hormone melatonin is particularly sensitive to blue light.
- A recent study published in the journal Nature [DOI: 10.1038/nature23288] [DX] revealed that artificial light was a threat to crop pollination - reducing the pollinating activity of nocturnal insects.
- Research in the UK revealed that trees in more brightly lit areas burst their buds up to a week earlier [open, DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.0813] [DX] than those in areas without artificial lighting.
- A study published earlier this year found that urban light installations "dramatically altered" the behaviour of nocturnally migrating birds.
Lead researcher Christopher Kyba from the German Research Centre for Geoscience in Potsdam said that the introduction of artificial light was "one of the most dramatic physical changes human beings have made to our environment".
Also at Sky & Telescope, NPR, and EurekAlert.
Artificially lit surface of Earth at night increasing in radiance and extent (open, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1701528) (DX)
Previously: Bring on the Night, say National Park Visitors in New Study
Light Pollution Prevents 80% of North Americans From Seeing the Milky Way
Study Shows That Artificial Lights Deter Nocturnal Pollinators
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Monday November 27 2017, @07:40PM (2 children)
If you've ever flown low over a city at night you've no doubt seen a lot of brightly lit parking lots. Looking closely, you observe that the lights send 100% of their light downward onto the pavement. Well below horizontal.
The light reaching your eyes is light pollution. It illuminates particles in the atmosphere.
Maybe pavement should absorb all light reaching it and reflect none. However that reduces the usefulness and safety of lighting the parking lot. You want to be able to see the pavement and its markings.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 2) by DECbot on Monday November 27 2017, @08:41PM (1 child)
What you suggest is interesting, but how would you apply this to grass, trees, houses, cars, and such things that we like to see during the day? Additionally, your absorbent surfaces will likely be black and cause massive local warming all over the globe, exasperating global warming.
My novel, soon to be patent pending, solution calls for geostationary blackout curtains to be shuttered during night time hours to trap light in the atmosphere and prevent light pollution in higher orbits, and naturally from the rest of the solar system. The secondary benefit, the curtains will act as a solar sail that will keep Earth's orbit from encroaching the sun due to the loss of mass caused from space exploration and light pollution and thus keep global temperatures and calendar length relatively unchanged.
cats~$ sudo chown -R us /home/base
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 27 2017, @10:07PM
I would like to invest in your pending patent good sir, my monocled friends and I see a great opportunity here.