According to a new study published Thursday, light pollution has prevented eight out of 10 Americans and nearly a third of humanity from seeing our galaxy. The problem is something called "skyglow," which is the cumulative, diffuse glow of skylight from artificial light sources.
A new study published in the journal Science used community-supplied data from a program called The Globe at Night, run by NOIRLab, a network of observatories run by NOIRLab. Sponsored by the National Science Foundation. He found that the skylight seen by the human eye was harder than satellite measurements of artificial light on Earth.
This study is the latest addition to a large body of scientific literature on light pollution that has existed since at least half a century ago.
By analyzing more than 50,000 observations from citizen scientists, researchers found a 9.6% increase in sky brightness over the past decade, compared with just 2% per year as measured by satellites . "At this rate of change, a child born where 250 stars can be seen will only be able to see about 100 stars by age 18," said Christopher Kyba, lead author of the study and researcher. at the German Research Institute, said. Center for Geosciences, in a press release.
The authors estimate that 80% of people in the United States and 30% worldwide cannot see the ethereal arc of the Milky Way on a clear night.
Part of the problem with what we can see with the naked eye is due to the types of light used.
"LEDs have a big influence on our perception of sky brightness," says Kyba. "This could be one of the reasons for the discrepancy between satellite measurements and sky conditions reported by Globe at Night participants."
Satellites also have difficulty detecting light emitted horizontally from larger sources in the city such as billboards or storefronts.
“The rate at which stars become invisible to humans in urban environments is enormous,” adds Kyba.
Strongest increase in skylight in North America, followed by Europe
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