|
Light pollution is the easiest pollution to fix ‐ so why aren't we doing it?
[Salon] Our night sky is rapidly disappearing. At our current rate of dumping excess light into the world, a child born today who could see 250 stars right now from their nearby night sky will only be able to see 100 stars from that same spot on their 18th birthday.Light pollution does far more than ruin stargazing experiences — it has a devastating affect on the environment. Driven primarily by unchecked urbanization, light pollution disrupts firefly mating rituals, lengthens pollen season and makes navigation more difficult for diverse species ranging from monarch butterflies to Atlantic salmon. It isn't good for human health, either. Too much artificial light has been linked to an increased risk of depression while electronic devices can negatively impact our sleep. Globe at Night regularly monitors the sky, but not because these astronomers are casually sky gazing for fun. They are citizen scientists from all over the world united by a common goal: The need to monitor the sky and measure light pollution, or excess artificial lighting that has a negative impact on the natural environment. They discovered that the night sky on average gets 9.6% brighter every year. Considering the seriousness of the light pollution problem, one would think that it's impossible to solve. In fact, it would be quite easy for people to reduce light pollution both for their own sake and that of animals in their environment. After all, light pollution exists entirely as a result of human behavior. Posted by: Besoeker 2023-07-24 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=673498 |