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Light Pollution

On December 24th, AES Andes, a subsidiary of the US power company AES Corporation, submitted a project for a massive industrial complex for environmental impact assessment. This complex threatens the pristine skies above ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile’s Atacama Desert, the darkest and clearest of any astronomical observatory in the world [1]. The industrial megaproject is planned to be located just 5 to 11 kilometres from telescopes at Paranal, which would cause irreparable damage to astronomical observations, in particular due to light pollution emitted throughout the project’s operational life. Relocating the complex would save one of Earth's last truly pristine dark skies.

World’s Darkest Observatory Under Threat from Massive Industrial Development

The prevalence of light pollution on sleeping honey bees varies from region to region.

Light Pollution Disrupts Bee Sleep Patterns, Threatening Vital Pollinators

a neighborhood after midnight

Light Pollution Linked to Higher Alzheimer’s Risk, Especially in Younger Adults

A neighborhood with trees at night

Streetlights running all night makes leaves so tough that insects can’t eat them

Bird at night. Unsplash

Artificial light is luring birds to cities and sometimes to their deaths

Underwater vista

Spawning Shadows

Pretty bug

Artificial Bites at Night

Two scared or afraid puppies dogs hide behind a green curtain because of fireworks, thunderstorm or noise.

Short-term bang of fireworks has long-term impact on wildlife

A startling analysis from Globe at Night — a citizen science program run by NSF’s NOIRLab — concludes that stars are disappearing from human sight at an astonishing rate. The study finds that, to human eyes, artificial lighting has dulled the night sky more rapidly than indicated by satellite measurements. The study showcases the unique contributions that citizen scientists can make in essential fields of research. This graphic illustrates how the greater the amount of light pollution, and therefore skyglow, the fewer the stars that are visible.

Stars disappear before our eyes, citizen scientists report

Circumpolar Laser Tests at Gemini North

SpaceX Agrees to Mitigate Impact of Starlink Satellites on Astronomy

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