Light pollution

The heart of our Milky Way galaxy — blotted out for more than half of the UK population by light pollution. Photo: CfDS image library.

Darkness at night is one of the things that defines the countryside and makes it so different from towns and cities.

But that darkness is disappearing, and with it our view of the stars and planets.

It's disappearing because we carelessly and wastefully beam outdoor light upwards into the sky. Collectively, these lights stop us from being able to see the night sky, with all its majesty and mystery. Instead, we see only a pinky orange glow, which only a few dozen of the brightest stars can penetrate. This glow spreads for miles outside towns and cities, making it much harder — or even impossible — to see the sight of thousands of stars and our own galaxy, the Milky Way.

The constellation of Orion, clearly visible in the absence of light pollution. Photo: B Mizon, CfDS image library

This light pollution is getting worse. Satellite data we've obtained from US Air Force weather satellites shows that light pollution is spreading into new areas of countryside and increasing in the areas where it was before.

Our light pollution maps
We've used this data to create maps which show how much light pollution there is in your area.

Things you can do
Everyone can play their part in making light pollution less of a problem. In our homes we can use lighting that is carefully positioned and designed to light our paths and not spread light upwards. Businesses could reduce overly bright lights from as much as 500 watts to 150 watts. Local councils could use full cut-off flat glass lighting to reduce the glare of excessively bright street lights.

Campaign success
Intrusive lighting will now be treated as a Statutory Nuisance thanks to a change in the law which we campaigned for.