Sky brightness levels before and after the creation of the first International Dark Sky Reserve, Mont-Mégantic Observatory, Québec, Canada

Aubé, Martin; Roby, Johanne

doi:10.1016/j.jqsrt.2014.01.021

Cited by 32 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…A critical question for sustainable development is whether the use of outdoor light will continue to grow exponentially or whether developed countries are nearing saturation in demand ( 3 ). In addition to the possibility that the existing light levels are already sufficient for any desired visual task, factors that reduce demand include greater public recognition of the unintended ecological ( 6 ) and astronomical ( 5 , 7 ) impacts of outdoor light pollution, official warnings that overexposure to artificial light may be affecting human sleep and health ( 8 ), efforts to transition to a sustainable society with decreased electricity demand ( 9 ), the desire of local governments to reduce the costs of lighting ( 10 ), and the establishment of protected “dark sky” areas ( 11 ). If demand saturation has not been reached, then the increasing luminous efficacy made possible by the solid-state lighting revolution ( 12 ) will increase light emissions instead of saving energy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Artificially lit surface of Earth at night increasing in radiance and extent

et al. 2017

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Artificially lit surface of Earth at night increasing in radiance and extent

et al. 2017

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“…The aim is not to eliminate light emissions completely, but rather to follow best practices, including directing light more accurately, limiting total emissions, reducing blue light emissions, and lighting only at times that are needed [20,21]. In at least one case, these efforts were demonstrated to have resulted in a major improvement in night sky visibility [22].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Testing for changes in light emissions from certified International Dark Sky Places

Hyde

Frank

Barentine

et al. 2019

IJSL

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The International Dark-Sky Places (IDSP) program of the International Dark-Sky Association is a voluntary certification in which communities commit via legislative changes to move towards more sustainable lighting that reduces light pollution. As over 115 IDSP have now been certified, it is interesting to ask the extent to which this certification results in reduced light emissions. In this paper, we compared trends in upward light emission of 98 communities located in or near IDSP to those of 98 similarly sized communities further away from the IDSP, using a night lights observing satellite (the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite Day-Night Band). The current dataset is not sufficient to distinguish the hypothesis that IDSP certification results in a lower rate of change in upward light emissions from the null hypothesis that IDSP certification has no impact. This result is with regard to upward light emissions only: it is possible that certification has resulted in decreases in night sky brightness that the satellite is not able to observe.

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“…[20,21]) may be of particular interest in the rural German context, as a recent study observed an approximately 80% decrease in the abundance of flying insects in areas far from German cities [22]. More carefully applied lighting would also reduce skyglow, leading to increased visibility of stars [23,24]. This may be of particular interest to those living in rural areas, for purposes of increasing astrotourism [25][26][27].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in outdoor lighting in Germany from 2012-2016

Kyba

Kuester

Kuechly

2017

IJSL

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Changes in the total lit area and the radiance of stably lit area in the German federal states from 2012-2016 were investigated using satellite observations from the Day-Night Band of the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite. Most states increased in both lit area and radiance. The lit area of Bayern and Schleswig-Holstein grew most rapidly, but it is possible that their large increases are to some extent driven by a darker than usual observation in 2012. Thüringen was dramatically different from the other states, with an annual decrease in lit area, and in the radiance of stably lit areas. The rates of change measured from 2012-2015 and 2013-2016 are strongly correlated with each other (Pearson's ρ=0.67, p=0.01). In most states, least squares fits for the rate of change match the rate calculated as a ratio of 2016 to 2012. These results are therefore consistent with the hypothesis that the changes in observed radiance are due to lighting change, but this should be verified in the future when longer time series are available. Due to the (500-900 nm) spectral response of the satellite, transitions from high pressure sodium to LED street lighting that preserve total lumen output are be expected to be observed as a decrease in radiance. Since such decreases are not observed in most states, the observations of increasing light emissions in most states are not indicative of a national transition toward sustainable lighting. In addition to these results, this paper discusses the role of remotely sensed nighttime data within the context of sustainable lighting.

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Sky brightness levels before and after the creation of the first International Dark Sky Reserve, Mont-Mégantic Observatory, Québec, Canada

Cited by 32 publications

References 4 publications

Artificially lit surface of Earth at night increasing in radiance and extent

Artificially lit surface of Earth at night increasing in radiance and extent

Testing for changes in light emissions from certified International Dark Sky Places

Changes in outdoor lighting in Germany from 2012-2016

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