Dark Skies

The British Astronomical Association’s Campaign for Dark (starry, natural) Skies

The CfDS aims to preserve and restore the beauty of the night sky by campaigning against excessive, inefficient and irresponsible lighting that shines where it is not wanted nor needed. Did you know that:

• Light intruding into bedrooms at night can cause problems involving the human immune system, and other medical problems.
• Lights have caused highway fatalities by blinding car drivers.
• Inefficient lighting wastes over £1 billion per annum in the UK alone.
• less than 10% of the UK population can see the beauty of a natural night sky.

Some quick definitions…

* Light pollution – Light that shines where it is neither needed nor wanted

* Good lighting – Lighting that shines only onto the ground (where it is needed!)

* Bad lighting – Lighting that shines outwards into homes (disturbing people’s sleep), and upwards into the sky wasting money, and creating an orange “smog” in the sky.

Light should shine only where it is needed and wanted, and nowhere else. Doing so is both easy and cost-effective – and with significant health and safety benefits.

Unfortunately, massive amounts of light are wastefully shone into the sky, causing the orange smog that hangs over towns and cities at night.

This Light Pollution is a visible and needless waste of resources, which contributes to global warming.

Why Light pollution is bad for you.

Psychological Stresses

Living within the arctic circles can exhibit psychological stresses on inhabitants, due to the 24-hour daylight in summer, and 24-hour darkness in winter. Suicide rates in Finland are one of the highest in the world. Many would guess that the 24 hours of darkness would be the most stressful time, but apparently not. The thesis of Dr Helina Hakko states: “A significant excess of total suicides was found during spring/summer (May-July) and a significant trough during winter/spring (December-March) months.”. The 24-hour daylight appears to cause more stress and suicides than at any other time of the year. For more information, please look at Dr Helina Hakko’s PhD thesis.

Medical Problems in Children…

Other health problems can occur in children. Scientists have warned that children who sleep with a light on during the night could be ruining their eyesight (see this BBC News story). US scientists found that children who sleep with a light on are significantly more likely to grow up short-sighted and having to wear glasses, when compared to children who sleep in the dark.

Research sponsored by a power company found that exposure to constant artificial light may reduce levels of melatonin, which regulates the body’s internal clock, and the Circadian cycle (see the BBC News article). Dr Chris Idzikowski, director of the Sleep Assessment and Advisory Service, said that leaving lights on at night “…could lead to a disruption of sleeping patterns, hyper-activity and may have a negative impact on a child’s health.”

Other medical problems…

It is well documented that excessive light can lead to a chronic lack of sleep, diminishing the effectiveness of the body’s immune system; indeed, shining light is a common method of torture: “Ill-treatment also reported to Amnesty International include prolonged sleep deprivation, inadequate exercise provision, prolonged restraint in painful positions, sometimes combined with exposure to loud music, and exposure to 24-hour lighting.” (click here for the full press release).