‍

“As light pollution spreads, we are slowly losing one of the oldest and most universal links to all of human history.” – Peter Lipscomb

Over 80% of the global population lives in brightly lit cities and towns, but all that light comes at a price. Ironically, that price is also light—natural light. The stars of our night skies have been fading in the past few decades. But they’re not going anywhere; those stars and galaxies are all still there, it’s just that we can’t see them. About one-third of the entire world population can’t see the milky way due to light pollution. Light pollution impairs the natural world and hides the secrets of space.

From the beginning of life on earth until recently, the natural world has been governed by the rhythm of day and night. Animals who depend on natural light to pilot them home are in serious danger due to synthetic lights, like newly hatched sea turtles who are guided by natural light reflecting off of waves to find their way to the sea. Artificial lights often confuse wildlife and draw them towards dangerous environments in cities like highways and high traffic zones. For instance, migrating birds are set off course by misleading light sources and risk colliding with city lights and buildings.

The overabundance of artificial light interferes with the day and night cycles of many nocturnal species disrupting their crucial feeding and mating rituals. For bats, light pollution gives the impression of hazardous daytime, preventing or delaying their nightly ascent into the darkness to forage for food and mates.

Animals aren’t the only ones who suffer from light pollution; astronomers find it increasingly difficult to find skies dark enough to observe the spectacles in space and to identify hazards before they devastate our earth. Celestial bodies, galaxies, and nebulae are washed out by the glow of artificial lights. If our current environmental habits worsen, it is likely humanity will have to take to outer space in search of a home. But the next breakthrough in the skies could be hidden by our own light. It seems all of our light has kept us in the dark.

Fortunately, light pollution is one of the easiest environmental problems to tackle. Unlike water or air pollution, light pollution can be tamed quickly. Most simply, turn off your lights! Installing dimmers, timers, or warm coloured LEDs in households can also help reduce the amount of light emission. Participate in “light out” events such as Earth Hour (March 26 from 8:30-9:30) and watch the sky naturally light up. The greatest light show isn’t in Singapore or New York, it’s right above us. We just can’t see it yet.

Works cited

Associate Professor Therésa Jones and Dr. Jen Martin, University of Melbourne and Marnie Ogg. “Where Have All the Stars Gone?” Pursuit, The University of Melbourne, 25 Feb. 2022, pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/where-have-all-the-stars-gone.

“Light Pollution Effects on Wildlife and Ecosystems.” International Dark-Sky Association, 12 Sept. 2016, www.darksky.org/light-pollution/wildlife/.

Bradford, Alina. “Pollution Facts & Types of Pollution.” LiveScience, Purch, 28 Feb. 2018, www.livescience.com/22728-pollution-facts.html.

National Geographic Society. “Light Pollution.” National Geographic Society, 15 July 2019, www.nationalgeographic.org/article/light-pollution/.

Bat Conservation Trust. “Lighting – Threats to Bats.” Bat Conservation Trust,

www.bats.org.uk/about-bats/threats-to-bats/lighting.

ASTROLab du parc national du Mont-Mégantic. “Light Pollution: Light.” Canada under the Stars, astro-canada.ca/la_pollution_lumineuse-light_pollution-eng#:~:text=In%20astronomy%2C%20li ght%20pollution%20is,is%20increasingly%20difficult%20to%20find.

‍