Natural lightscapes

[Gloria]

The dark of night is a necessary component to the habitat of many species. Are you afraid of the dark? Have you ever sat and watched the night sky in an area where city lights did not dim your vision? What can we do to protect the dark?

NPS: Explore Nature Air Resources Division-Natural Lightscapes

Principles of Night Sky Friendly Lighting...

Use outdoor lights only where they are needed
Direct all light downward by using shielded lights and aiming them down
Use motion sensors and timers to insure lights are on only when needed
Use the right amount of light, not too much, not too little
In darker areas, use less light to prevent disrupting night vision

NPS: Nature&Science Air Resources Division: Natural Lightscapes

Starry night skies and natural darkness are part of the special places we protect. National Parks hold some of the last remaining harbors of darkness and provide an excellent opportunity for the public to experience this disappearing resource.

DID YOU KNOW?
Two–thirds of Americans cannot see the Milky Way from their backyard, and 99% of the population live in an area that scientists consider light polluted. The rate at which light pollution is increasing will leave almost no dark skies in the contiguous US by 2025.

[dapjwy]

I'm always thrilled to see how bright the stars seem here where we live--I'm sure we could have an even better situation...there is one streetlight (the neighbor had one put near their driveway). I wonder how much darker it would be without it.

I must say that there have been times, on a clear night when there is a full moon, that it is amazingly bright here! I love it!

[NEWisc]

Interesting post. Light is not something I would normally consider when thinking about pollution. The articles make a lot of good points and create an awareness of the pollution potential of lighting.

The first link has some really good info on improving outdoor lighting practices. I will probably be replacing my outdoor lighting in the near future and I will definitely be using the information in that article.

[suunto]

The night sky here on cloudless evenings is fantastic. On winter nights with a full moon, you hardly need headlights to see well enough to drive! And the Milky Way itself looks like a thin band of clouds (which it is, of course - stars!)...

[Gloria]

Not living where the stars are fully visible ever like some. But traveling out west we have seen some wonderful night skies. Check out these pictures and a video taken at night. He speaks beifly about light pollution.
This summer the fireflies at our son's made me think a lot about how light can change the biodiversity of any given place.

10 Extraordinary Photographs of the Starry Night Sky : TreeHugger

[dapjwy]

Beautiful, Gloria!

...Maybe I should take back what I said; I've never seen skies like that here!

I do have to go out more often at night and enjoy the stars I can see though.

[linrose]

It shows how we take for granted so many things that are really special. Having never lived in a city I can't imagine not seeing stars on a cloudless night. Many people actually are afraid of the dark. When one of our neighbors moved in from a populated area the first thing they did was illuminate the hell out of their property, that and put up their house number in various iterations all over the place just to make sure UPS could find them I can only imagine!