The Night Sky without Pollution
- Rosa M-V
- Feb 4
- 3 min read
The night sky has always been an inspiration to mankind.
Believe it or not, stargazing has widely influenced human knowledge. According to Northern Arizona University, ancient humans slowly noticed a pattern over their heads and realized how the stars track time and place.Ancient sailors, for instance, used stars and constellations to guide their travels. Polynesians sailed among the Pacific Ocean islands by simply watching stars. Many ancient populations also used the Sun and stars as functional time indicators like the ancient natives of North America, who lined up circles of stones with the Sun and stars to chart the rising Sun and the beginning of summers.
Additionally, the stars have influenced diverse cultures across the globe. Human perception of stars and constellations has helped create mythological deities, stories and rituals, as reported by science writer Jo Marchant in her speech at the Getty Museum. The Sun, for example, was believed to be the giver of life, growing the crops that were meticulously worked by man. Ra, the God of Sun, was one of the most worshipped Egyptian gods. The Chumash people of California believe the sky is filled with living beings such as the sky coyote (A.k.a. our star Polaris), which is thought to gamble with the sun over the fates of the people below.
It’s such an astonishing experience to look up and see the same night sky our ancestors were fascinated about. Unfortunately, stargazing is an art that we’re slowly losing.Nowadays, these gorgeous views are disappearing at a rapid pace.
The image below (free stock photo by Creative Commons) represents the average city night sky in 2026:
As stated in Darksky.org, light pollution is the main cause of our home galaxy’s stars being less visible by the day.
Light pollution is the human-made alteration of outdoor light levels from those occurring naturally. It is a side effect of industrial civilization, in which man-made objects/structures that use artificial light (like advertising, commercial properties, factories, etc..) are present.
To the human eye, this issue is constantly causing duller sights of clear night skies. Artificial lighting has been increasingly denying us the view of our home galaxy faster than satellites can indicate.
Other side effects of light pollution include: Damages to human health, wildlife and ecosystems, along with night crime increases.
In a nutshell, an uninterrupted natural cycle of day and night is crucial for human and fauna health. Artificial lighting disrupts this cycle, leading to health issues that can easily harm whole ecosystems. As for night crime increases, street lights are designed to make us feel safer at night, when in reality, it does the exact opposite. Victims are easier to spot and this puts them in an endangered position, especially at night when they tend to be alone.
Over 80% of the world’s population is affected by this issue. A clear night sky without light pollution is imperative for natural landscapes and their eco-systems to function correctly.
Thankfully, unlike many types of pollution, light pollution IS reversible.
Using responsible lighting practices or advancing in scientific research are some of the ways we can reverse light pollution.
To help minimize light pollution, according to GBL infrastructure solutions, we as individuals can:
Turn on the lights only when needed
Shield our outdoor lights and use eco-friendly or green outdoor lighting
Draw our blinds before we sleep to prevent the outside light from entering our home (the installation of motion detector lights is highly recommended if home safety is a concern).
Help measure the light pollution in our neighborhood.
To learn more about light pollution, I recommend visiting “Darksky.org”. It’s an organization
with over 4,000 advocates aiming to reverse light pollution. It goes way more into detail about this.
Each and every one of us can make a difference! It’s a crucial time to look up at the world above us and realize how important it actually is. With hope and action, almost everything is possible.
References:
Medium.com - “Dark Skies.” (by Kiss House)
Northern Arizona University - “Early Astronomy”
Getty Museum on Youtube - “How The Stars have changed Humanity” (speech by science writer Jo Marchant)
US National Science Foundation NoirLAB - “Stars disappear before our eyes in light pollution, citizen scientists report”
GBL infrastructure solutions - “How Can We Reverse Light Pollution?”
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