'Why It's So Bright at Night' is a periodic episode of Light Pollution News, where host Bill McGeeney sits down and chats to understand the positions of people who advocate for light. The show's intent is to spur conversation and understanding, helping all of us work together to a common unified goal of a better tomorrow for people, plants and animals.

This episode, mentioned in the Feb 2024: A Space for Celebration episode, Jennifer Huygen started a petition in Stevenage, England to add lighting to a park. We explore why the lighting is needed, what types of lighting would be deemed acceptable, and seek to understand the cultural issues that are driving the need behind the lights.

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A hearty thank you to all of our paid supporters out there. You make this show possible.

For only the cost of one coffee each month you can help us to continue to grow. That’s $3 a month. If you like what we’re doing, if you think this adds value in any way, why not say thank you by becoming a supporter!

Why Support Light Pollution News?

• Receive quarterly invite to join as live audience member for recordings with special Q&A session post recording with guests.
• Receive all of the news for that month via a special Supporter monthly mailer.
• Satisfaction that your support helps further critical discourse on this topic.

About Light Pollution News:

The path to sustainable starry night solutions begin with being a more informed you.

Light Pollution, once thought to be solely detrimental to astronomers, has proven to be an impactful issue across many disciplines of society including ecology, crime, technology, health, and much more!

But not all is lost! There are simple solutions that provide for big impacts. Each month, Bill McGeeney, is joined by upwards of three guests to help you grow your awareness and understanding of both the challenges and the road to recovering our disappearing nighttime ecosystem.

Host Bill McGeeney is joined by freelance writer, Lauren Collee, astronomer, Tim Brothers, and film maker, Tara Roberts Zabriski.

See Full Show Notes, Lighting Tips and more at LightPollutionNews.com. Like this episode, share it with a friend!

Bill's Picks:

• It’s autumn everywhere except under this streetlight, Be Smart.
• The Small Town That Turned Christmas Lights Into an Economic Miracle, Ruth Simon and Dave Cole, The Wall Street Journal.
• City of Davis looking for better ideas to light up streets, James Yalor, CBS News Sacramento. 
• Streetlight Color Temperatures our Community Cares About, City of Boulder.
• Power outage and environmental justice in Winter Storm Uri: an analytical workflow based on nighttime light remote sensing, International Journal of Digital Earth.
• An inventory of human light exposure behaviour, Scientific Reports.
• In rural California, bright Santa Tracker spotlight divides a community, Clare Fonstein, San Francisco Chronicle. 
• Maine’s Penobscot Watershed Is Too Important to Allow Mining, Linda Coutant, National Parks Conservation Association.
• Influence of COVID-19 on night-time lights in Czechia, Journal of Maps.

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Support the show

A hearty thank you to all of our paid supporters out there. You make this show possible.

For only the cost of one coffee each month you can help us to continue to grow. That’s $3 a month. If you like what we’re doing, if you think this adds value in any way, why not say thank you by becoming a supporter!

Why Support Light Pollution News?

• Receive quarterly invite to join as live audience member for recordings with special Q&A session post recording with guests.
• Receive all of the news for that month via a special Supporter monthly mailer.
• Satisfaction that your support helps further critical discourse on this topic.

About Light Pollution News:

The path to sustainable starry night solutions begin with being a more informed you.

Light Pollution, once thought to be solely detrimental to astronomers, has proven to be an impactful issue across many disciplines of society including ecology, crime, technology, health, and much more!

But not all is lost! There are simple solutions that provide for big impacts. Each month, Bill McGeeney, is joined by upwards of three guests to help you grow your awareness and understanding of both the challenges and the road to recovering our disappearing nighttime ecosystem.

Host Bill McGeeney is joined by AstroBackyard's Ashley Northcotte, lighting designer and founder of Dark Source, Kerem Asfuroglu, and educator and advocate, Diane Turnshek.

See Full Show Notes, Lighting Tips and more at LightPollutionNews.com. Like this episode, share it with a friend!

Bill's Picks:

• God’s Promises Are Clearest When We Turn Out the Lights, Cort Gatliff, Christianity Today. 
• Stays in Vegas: London mayor rejects plan for Stratford Sphere venue, Robert Booth, The Guardian. 
• Heber Valley Utah Temple approved. See why the church agreed to dim the lighting, Tad Walch, Dessert News. 
• Trains, stargazing put Ely on the map. Critics fear clean energy project could undo that., Wyaat Myskow, The Nevada Independent. 
• Energy efficiency indicators in road lighting: critical evaluation in a case study, Bulletin of the Polish Academy of Sciences Technical Sciences. 
• Shining a light on duckweed: exploring the effects of artificial light at night (ALAN) on growth and pigmentation, Plant Biology. 
• Giant lasers to light up San Francisco for APEC, Amy Larson, KRON 4. 
• Why can’t I wish upon a star in Boston?, Meg Richards, Berkeley Beacon. 

Send Feedback Text to the Show!

Support the show

A hearty thank you to all of our paid supporters out there. You make this show possible.

For only the cost of one coffee each month you can help us to continue to grow. That’s $3 a month. If you like what we’re doing, if you think this adds value in any way, why not say thank you by becoming a supporter!

Why Support Light Pollution News?

• Receive quarterly invite to join as live audience member for recordings with special Q&A session post recording with guests.
• Receive all of the news for that month via a special Supporter monthly mailer.
• Satisfaction that your support helps further critical discourse on this topic.

About Light Pollution News:

The path to sustainable starry night solutions begin with being a more informed you.

Light Pollution, once thought to be solely detrimental to astronomers, has proven to be an impactful issue across many disciplines of society including ecology, crime, technology, health, and much more!

But not all is lost! There are simple solutions that provide for big impacts. Each month, Bill McGeeney, is joined by upwards of three guests to help you grow your awareness and understanding of both the challenges and the road to recovering our disappearing nighttime ecosystem.

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Happy Holidays from Light Pollution News! Here's a special gift episode as a thank you for your continued support in 2023!
 
In this special mini-episode, host Bill McGeeney shares seven articles left out of the normal month to month cycle! Stay tuned to for a post-show wrap up montage!

See Full Show Notes, Lighting Tips and more at LightPollutionNews.com. Like this episode, share it with a friend!

Bill's Picks:

• Bored Ape creator says UV lights at ApeFest burned attendees’ eyes and skin, Beth mole, Ars Technica. 
• Lighting up rural Zimbabwe with upcycled plastic and LEDs, Privilege Musvanhiri, Deutsche Welle.
• The night sky is always getting faked, Emma Roth, the Verge. 
• Illuminating investments: capitalising on the battle against light pollution, Lombard Odier.
• 12 News Investigates: Hidden neighborhood danger -- street lights shocking dogs, killing one, Hillary Mintz, WISN.
• LED lightbulbs may be hazardous to your health, Katherine Drabiak, The Hill.
• Q&A: Why Do Humans Need Dark Skies?, Anya Petrone Slepyan, Daily Yonder. 

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Last Episode of 2023! Host Bill McGeeney is joined by 2023 Dark Sky Int'l Rising Star Award Recipient, Bonnie Peng, photographer of the new book, Spirits Dancing, Travis Novitsky, and Dark Skies Initiative Coordinator for the McDonald Observatory, Stephen Hummel.

See Full Show Notes, Lighting Tips and more at LightPollutionNews.com. Like this episode, share it with a friend!

Bill's Picks: 

• F1 bans three key colours from Sphere during Vegas GP action, Adam Cooper, Autosport. 
• Artificial light at night: a global disruptor of the night-time environment, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B. 
• Nighttime drone shows gaining more popularity, WVLT News. 
• 5 Things You Can Do to Reduce Light Pollution, Madeleine Burry, AAA.
• SIU student’s campaign illuminates light pollution and its impact on wildlife, Carly Gist, Daily Egyptian.
• DARK SKIES: Students invited to count stars to pinpoint areas of light pollution in southwestern N.S., Tina Comeau, Saltwire. 
• Low-cost air, noise, and light pollution measuring station with wireless communication and tinyML, Hardware X. 
• Livin’ the Dream: Stars in a dark night sky, Mountain Times.

Send Feedback Text to the Show!

Support the show

A hearty thank you to all of our paid supporters out there. You make this show possible.

For only the cost of one coffee each month you can help us to continue to grow. That’s $3 a month. If you like what we’re doing, if you think this adds value in any way, why not say thank you by becoming a supporter!

Why Support Light Pollution News?

• Receive quarterly invite to join as live audience member for recordings with special Q&A session post recording with guests.
• Receive all of the news for that month via a special Supporter monthly mailer.
• Satisfaction that your support helps further critical discourse on this topic.

About Light Pollution News:

The path to sustainable starry night solutions begin with being a more informed you.

Light Pollution, once thought to be solely detrimental to astronomers, has proven to be an impactful issue across many disciplines of society including ecology, crime, technology, health, and much more!

But not all is lost! There are simple solutions that provide for big impacts. Each month, Bill McGeeney, is joined by upwards of three guests to help you grow your awareness and understanding of both the challenges and the road to recovering our disappearing nighttime ecosystem.

This month, host Bill McGeeney is joined by Ben Chappell, of the Narrowband Channel, Matthias Schmitt, Cedar Breaks National Monument Night Sky Program Manager, and environmental educator / blogger, Frank Turina.

See Full Show Notes at LightPollutionNews.com.

• While Las Vegas inaugurates its Sphere, London residents push back on plans for replica venue, Duarte Dias, CBS News.
• L.A. planning commission backs plan for 80 digital billboards on Metro sites, David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times.
• Astronomers sound alarm over light pollution from huge new satellite, Nicola Davis, The Guardian.
• Little-known medical condition that only reveals itself at night could affect millions, Antony Thrower, The Mirror.
• Pennsylvania Knights Build Observatory at VA Hospital, Knights of Columbus Supreme Council. 
• Birders’ Joy Turns to Shock as Massive Migratory Wave Leads to Mass Mortality Due to Collisions With Chicago Buildings, Patty Wetli, WTTW.
• NEXT BIG STEPS FOR LIGHTS OUT LEGISLATION IN NEW YORK CITY, Suzanne Charle, NYC Audubon.

Send Feedback Text to the Show!

Support the show

A hearty thank you to all of our paid supporters out there. You make this show possible.

For only the cost of one coffee each month you can help us to continue to grow. That’s $3 a month. If you like what we’re doing, if you think this adds value in any way, why not say thank you by becoming a supporter!

Why Support Light Pollution News?

• Receive quarterly invite to join as live audience member for recordings with special Q&A session post recording with guests.
• Receive all of the news for that month via a special Supporter monthly mailer.
• Satisfaction that your support helps further critical discourse on this topic.

About Light Pollution News:

The path to sustainable starry night solutions begin with being a more informed you.

Light Pollution, once thought to be solely detrimental to astronomers, has proven to be an impactful issue across many disciplines of society including ecology, crime, technology, health, and much more!

But not all is lost! There are simple solutions that provide for big impacts. Each month, Bill McGeeney, is joined by upwards of three guests to help you grow your awareness and understanding of both the challenges and the road to recovering our disappearing nighttime ecosystem.

This month, host Bill McGeeney is joined by Ziz Knight, cofounder of the newly formed, Dark Skies Los Angeles, and Drew Evans, of the Flagstaff Dark Skies Coalition / Astrophotographer.

See Full Show Notes at LightPollutionNews.com.

• Perma-noon: On Light Pollution and the Way We Talk About the Natural World, Lauren Collee, LARB. 
• This Incredible Glamping Site in Utah Is the First Resort to Become Dark Sky Certified, Stefanie Waldek, Travel & Leisure. 
• How New ‘Dark Sky Resorts’ Will Help The Growing Astro-Tourism Market, James Carter, Forbes. 
• Dark skies & Wild roars: Astrotourism in Safari destinations, Tsoko Maela, Getaway. 
• Kayaking, night swims and stargazing: embracing adventure in Alentejo, Portugal, Orla Thomas, National Geographic. 
• Three high-profile bills the California legislature will hear before session ends, Edan Villavolas, Washington Examiner. 
• Cape May Introduces Light Pollution Ordinance, Vince Conti, Cape May County Herald. 
• You can see the Milky Way from Nantucket. Residents want to keep it that way, Paula Moura, WBUR. 
• Saving the Night Sky, Josh Riedel, Esquire. 

Send Feedback Text to the Show!

Support the show

A hearty thank you to all of our paid supporters out there. You make this show possible.

For only the cost of one coffee each month you can help us to continue to grow. That’s $3 a month. If you like what we’re doing, if you think this adds value in any way, why not say thank you by becoming a supporter!

Why Support Light Pollution News?

• Receive quarterly invite to join as live audience member for recordings with special Q&A session post recording with guests.
• Receive all of the news for that month via a special Supporter monthly mailer.
• Satisfaction that your support helps further critical discourse on this topic.

About Light Pollution News:

The path to sustainable starry night solutions begin with being a more informed you.

Light Pollution, once thought to be solely detrimental to astronomers, has proven to be an impactful issue across many disciplines of society including ecology, crime, technology, health, and much more!

But not all is lost! There are simple solutions that provide for big impacts. Each month, Bill McGeeney, is joined by upwards of three guests to help you grow your awareness and understanding of both the challenges and the road to recovering our disappearing nighttime ecosystem.

This month, host Bill McGeeney is joined by Frank Turina, an astrophotographer, night sky advocate, and environmental educator with more than 15 years of working with the United States National Park Service Night Skies Program. You can learn more about his examinations of the ecological and cultural effects of light pollution from his website, at Darkskyastrophoto.

And  Ken Walczak, Senior Manager of the Far Horizons program at the Adler Planetarium, Co-Author of numerous papers on design and use of innovating instrumentation for light pollution research, and co-lead in the successful designation of the world's largest Urban Night Sky Place, the Palos Preserves. Walczak is also a board member with Dark Sky International. 

See Full Show Notes at LightPollutionNews.com.

• With inspiration from Indianapolis, Destination Cleveland plans major downtown lighting installation, Susan Glaser, The Plain Dealer Cleveland.
• LED billboards could buy their way to Miami streets via campaign donations, Ladra, Political Cortadito.
• 150% increase in light pollution in three years may lead to loss of dark sky status for park, Catherine Hubbard, Stuff.co
• City of London Corporation Adopts New Net-Zero Light Pollution Guidance, Ella Tansley, This Week in FM.
• Environmental organization files 106 page report over light pollution on Palm Beach, threatens lawsuit, Caleb Califano, WPBF.
• Po

Send Feedback Text to the Show!

Support the show

A hearty thank you to all of our paid supporters out there. You make this show possible.

For only the cost of one coffee each month you can help us to continue to grow. That’s $3 a month. If you like what we’re doing, if you think this adds value in any way, why not say thank you by becoming a supporter!

Why Support Light Pollution News?

• Receive quarterly invite to join as live audience member for recordings with special Q&A session post recording with guests.
• Receive all of the news for that month via a special Supporter monthly mailer.
• Satisfaction that your support helps further critical discourse on this topic.

About Light Pollution News:

The path to sustainable starry night solutions begin with being a more informed you.

Light Pollution, once thought to be solely detrimental to astronomers, has proven to be an impactful issue across many disciplines of society including ecology, crime, technology, health, and much more!

But not all is lost! There are simple solutions that provide for big impacts. Each month, Bill McGeeney, is joined by upwards of three guests to help you grow your awareness and understanding of both the challenges and the road to recovering our disappearing nighttime ecosystem.

This month, host Bill McGeeney is joined by Jared Flesher, director of Dark Sacred Night, and Bill Green of the Philadelphia Moon Men and Brussels Lunatics. Learn more at LightPollutionNews.com.

Articles:

• U.S. Bans Incandescent Light Bulbs 
• The Next Pandemic Might Occur Because It’s Too Bright Out 
• Across China: Dark Sky Industry delivers bright future for village 
• Sheffield Conservation Area in Ontario has Gorgious Panomamic View 
• Under a sea of stars 
• These National Parks Are Hosting Stargazing Festivals in 2023 
• Why you should stop painting with light when photographing at night 
• Unistellar Says its New Astro Photo Tech Totally Eliminates Light Pollution 
• Charted: Distance to dark skies 
• Smart lighting to minimise light pollution and protect biodiversity 
• Low estrogen may worsen the circadian effects of light pollution 

Send Feedback Text to the Show!

Support the show

A hearty thank you to all of our paid supporters out there. You make this show possible.

For only the cost of one coffee each month you can help us to continue to grow. That’s $3 a month. If you like what we’re doing, if you think this adds value in any way, why not say thank you by becoming a supporter!

Why Support Light Pollution News?

• Receive quarterly invite to join as live audience member for recordings with special Q&A session post recording with guests.
• Receive all of the news for that month via a special Supporter monthly mailer.
• Satisfaction that your support helps further critical discourse on this topic.

About Light Pollution News:

The path to sustainable starry night solutions begin with being a more informed you.

Light Pollution, once thought to be solely detrimental to astronomers, has proven to be an impactful issue across many disciplines of society including ecology, crime, technology, health, and much more!

But not all is lost! There are simple solutions that provide for big impacts. Each month, Bill McGeeney, is joined by upwards of three guests to help you grow your awareness and understanding of both the challenges and the road to recovering our disappearing nighttime ecosystem.

This month, host Bill McGeeney is joined by Scott Morgan, Assistant Park Manager of the Hills Creek Park Complex - part of the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and Daylon Burt of the Astro Escape. Learn more at LightPollutionNews.com.

Articles:

• Survey finds increase in first-time Big Bend visitors, with most now staying outside the park
• A day in space: Look no further than Flagstaff for your cosmos-themed day trip
• 11 Dark Sky Airbnbs in Utah Perfect for Stargazing
• How to Find the Best Campsite for Stargazing This Summer
• 2 million acres, 8 forests. It's all in the Pennsylvania Wilds.
• Northern Nights, Starry Skies
• Light pollution and creation care
• New Study Shows Urban Lighting Disrupts Rural Insects
• Global disruption of coral broadcast spawning associated with artificial light at night
• Sustainable Landscapes Sustainable Places Dark Skies Project
• There are two places in the world you can see a moonbow and this KY state park is one
• Bridging the gap betwee

Send Feedback Text to the Show!

Support the show

A hearty thank you to all of our paid supporters out there. You make this show possible.

For only the cost of one coffee each month you can help us to continue to grow. That’s $3 a month. If you like what we’re doing, if you think this adds value in any way, why not say thank you by becoming a supporter!

Why Support Light Pollution News?

• Receive quarterly invite to join as live audience member for recordings with special Q&A session post recording with guests.
• Receive all of the news for that month via a special Supporter monthly mailer.
• Satisfaction that your support helps further critical discourse on this topic.

About Light Pollution News:

The path to sustainable starry night solutions begin with being a more informed you.

Light Pollution, once thought to be solely detrimental to astronomers, has proven to be an impactful issue across many disciplines of society including ecology, crime, technology, health, and much more!

But not all is lost! There are simple solutions that provide for big impacts. Each month, Bill McGeeney, is joined by upwards of three guests to help you grow your awareness and understanding of both the challenges and the road to recovering our disappearing nighttime ecosystem.