Light Pollution Is Totally Reversible

If you’re at all interested in astronomy or astrophotography, there is no escaping the effects of light pollution. Whether that means traveling to darker skies or using post-processing to reduce gradients, we all kind of wish it wasn’t there. Right?

Even if you’re not into taking photos of the night sky, light pollution affects us all, human to insect. In fact, it’s so prevalent that we have to have three terms to define it: glare, clutter, and light trespass.

In this video, Trevor Jones from Astrobackyard shares his thoughts on the ever-expanding issue of light pollution. With a quick look at the facts from the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA), the situation seems pretty bleak. Light pollution is expanding faster than population growth. 99% of the American and European population live under light-polluted skies. It confuses your circadian rhythm, and it affects everything through the three modes of transmission: glare, clutter, and light trespass. After a brief explanation of these terms, Trevor finishes the video with his thoughts on solutions, hoping to make outdoor lighting useful, targeted, shielded, and controlled to reduce the effects of light pollution. After all, with a literal flip of the switch, it's 100% reversible, with instantaneous effect. 

So, that raises the question, what do you think of light pollution? Regardless of what you believe, that 99% of us reading this article live under sky glow is astounding. It's also worth pointing out again that light pollution is 100% reversible. For more information on how you can help reduce light pollution right now, please check out the International Dark-Sky Association

Scott Donschikowski's picture

Scott Donschikowski is a professional photographer and educator with over 11 years of experience leading a variety of photo workshops around the world. He specializes mainly in landscape, wildlife, and astrophotography. He is also active on YouTube where he makes tutorials sharing his photographic knowledge.

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