The effects of light pollution

A bright street light in Lake Forest, California. Kaiya Biller | Lariat

Have you ever wondered why it’s so hard to see the stars? Here in Southern California, you can only see a few on a clear night, whereas in Colorado and Idaho, there are more stars than you can count. Light pollution is the cause of this. 

Light pollution is the brightening of the night sky from sources like street lights and buildings, which has a disruptive effect on ecosystems and inhibits the observation of the sky and stars. 

Light pollution messes with ecosystems like turtles. When turtles hatch from an egg, they can become disoriented by the man-made lights. The lights can mimic the moon over the ocean which confuses the baby turtles, luring the hatchlings over to the streetlights and further from the sea. This can cause slight to severe injury, fatigue and in some cases death to the baby hatchling.

Additionally, light pollution inhibits the viewing of stars and planets as well. According to Dr. Rasna Rajkhowa, writer for the International Journal of Science and Research, light pollution produces a skyglow which is a bright haze produced by artificial lights in highly polluted areas. This makes it harder for humans to see fainter objects in the sky, like stars.

The brighter the artificial light is, the harder it is to see stars. In suburban areas, it is more populated and there are more buildings, so the skyglow is much higher than in a rural area. In rural areas, there can be very little skyglow, making it much easier to see more stars and galaxies. 

Humans can also be negatively affected by light pollution. Man-made lights can lessen the release of melatonin, making it harder to fall asleep. Less sleep leads to fatigue, lower energy levels, less productivity and bad moods which can also make it harder to do tasks the next day.

Also, circadian rhythm is an internal body clock. For example the circadian rhythm is what makes a person hungry and tired at certain times, so the lessened amount of melatonin being released can completely mess up sleep schedules. Additionally, if the lessened sleep continues, it can lead to a more dangerous outcome like obtaining a sleep disorder. 

Overall, light pollution has many effects on ecosystems, the night sky and humans. One must be careful to ensure that light pollution doesn’t hurt their health and overall wellbeing. 

Comments

comments