yego.me
💡 Stop wasting time. Read Youtube instead of watch. Download Chrome Extension

Light Pollution 101 | National Geographic


2m read
·Nov 11, 2024

  • [Narrator] The invention of the electric light bulb, 150 years ago, was one of the most transformative milestones in history. This new form of light, artificial light, brightened and made safe once-dark streets, prolonged waking hours into the evening, and brought electricity into homes for the very first time.

Today, this glow has grown, but at a cost. Light pollution is the over-illumination of cities and night skies by artificial lighting. It's caused by the abundance of light sources emitting light outside of an intended direction. Several types of light pollution exist, including glare, which is a disruptive light that shines horizontally, light trespass, the unwanted shining of light onto nearby areas, and sky glow, a halo over inhabited areas caused by the scattering of light particles.

No matter what form light pollution takes, each can have unintended, yet harmful impacts. Wildlife, particularly sea turtles, have had their nocturnal patterns disrupted. The turtle hatchling's instinct to follow the light of the moon in order to reach the sea is intercepted by the light of inland cities. Because of this, many never find their way to the ocean.

Human's well being is also compromised by light pollution. The excess light can overwhelm photoreceptor cells in the retina, damaging one's eyesight. Plus, it disrupts natural sleep cycles, and causes sleep deprivation, leading to a number of health problems, possibly including cancer.

Light pollution also results in the production of additional carbon emissions. Each year, potentially billions of dollars worth of coal or oil, which are burned to produce electricity, are wasted on unnecessary light. Over the past several decades, light pollution in North America has increased an estimated 6 to 10% each year. A rise fueled by growing populations, greater access to electricity, and increased urban development.

Efforts have been made to help counter this rise in excess light, including the development of alternative energy-efficient light bulbs and smarter directional lighting designs. These and other innovations will continue to refine this 150-year-old technology, artificial light, and optimize it for a brighter future.

(light switch clicks)

More Articles

View All
Varying Definitions of “Awesome” | StarTalk
So, what do you, you’re impressed that food can come out of a machine? Hot, hot food! You press a button, you just… It’s like a real vending machine that you would get chips from. But instead, it’s like all these burgers, and they taste disgusting. But th…
Interpret a quadratic graph | Quadratic functions & equations | Algebra 1 | Khan Academy
Katie throws a ball in the air for her dog to chase. The function f models the height of the ball in meters as a function of time in seconds after Katie threw it. We could see that right over here this is our function f. So at time t equals zero, the hei…
Enter the Fish Hawk | Wicked Tuna
First day of the season. We’re heading out now, trying to get on some fish. I’m Brad Keselowski, captain of the Fishhawk. Fishing has always been a lot more than a job for me. I always had solace to be able to leave land and just fish to provide for my fa…
Cannabis Startup Founders David Hua and Vincent Ning on Legalization, Banking, and Industry Trends
We should start by talking about what David has brought. Oh yeah, this is different than a normal podcast. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I bought a selection of my favorite bowls, which my wife makes. They’re called mellows. I’ve also brought a bunch of flowers. I …
The 5 Financial Goals To Achieve In Your 20s
What’s up you guys, it’s Graham here. So, I have no idea how to start this video other than to say that I went down a bit of a rabbit hole the other day. You know, like when you come across something online and then for some reason, you open up another ta…
15 Reasons Why It's Not Too Late To Change Your Life
People go through constant change the entirety of their lives. No person really remains the same. But how do you change and in what directions should you choose to go? Well, that depends entirely on you. And the thing is, it’s never too late to change you…