Light at Night

Light pollution is an ever-present but eminently fixable problem around the globe.  It happens when people don’t use shielded lighting, overuse their lighting, and shine lights UP to the sky (thereby washing out the view of the stars). The nature of lighting is changing, and many places are making efforts to mitigate the overuse of lights. But, other changes are happening as well.

You’ve probably noticed that public lighting in some places is being replaced by bright LEDs. Not only can these be substantially brighter than sodium vapor and other outdoor lighting, but they can affect your health and the environment just as much (if not more so) than other kinds of lights. That has led the International Dark-Sky Association to update its Fixture Seal of Approval (FSA) that has been widely adapted by the lighting industry as an essential way to certify outdoor lighting. This is important, not just for stargazers, but for the population at large. Why so?

The FSA has, since its inception, helped many users of outdoor lights do the environmentally right thing when it comes to lighting their buildings and properties at night. They are finding that their costs forlighting (including electrical power) are substantially reduced while maintaining a safe level of lighting that doesn’t hurt the environment, trespass on neighbors, or shine up, uselessly lighting the sky.