A Big Carbon Footprint no one ever really talks about and a way to solve it.
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n0108/18lightpollute/
What you see in the photographs above is Light going directly up to
the satellite that just took it's picture.
Or as a noted retired astronomer likes to say that we are lighting the bellies of
Birds and Airplanes. Not to mention clouds too!:(
Well, for many years hardly anyone talked about it even though we all pay for it
to the tune of Billions of Dollars per year.
Not to mention how many tons of coal that we burn to produce the wasted electricity to produce wasted light!
And now, finally, folks are starting to think about it and it turns out that not only do we waste electricity, burn coal, but the environment pays by disrupting the natural circadian cycle to cause birds to fly into the night lights, mess with the reproductive cycles of of turtles and indications are that it can even cause cancer in human beings.
Not to mention that 97% of us in the United States can't see the beauty of the Universe such as this very first photo in the link below (minus the red)
http://www.astropix.com/HTML/H_OTHER/SATPOL1.HTM
Remember, we are looking at part of our Milky Way Galaxy that consists of
several hundred billion stars and it Should be visible but isn't because we must light the sky at night!
So, what is the solution?
That's easy:
http://www.ti.com/corp/docs/rennerroadfab/cutofflight.htm
Use full cut off light fixtures as in the photo above to direct the light onto the ground where it is needed and not into your eyes or into the sky where it is not needed.
And this is being done as we speak. Problem is though, it's not sexy enough yet.
The process of making folks aware of it is happening at an exceedingly slow rate.
For more information contact The International Dark Sky Association (IDA)
- P. Edward Murray's blog
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Be part of the Draft Gore '08 campaign!

Global warming and climate
Global warming and climate change are still the problems that our world is facing. There are lots of pollution that are contributing factors. One of the contributing factor is the burning of coal to produce electricity. The electricity is just wasted where it also produce wasted lights. We cannot see the beauty of the sky because of the pollution. What will be the solution to our problems? The effects of global warming will last a long time I think. That is what I'm going to find out because it is the topic of my essay. My research paper is about global warming and this article is one of my reference to my essay writing.
Less is More
Ironically, less light can mean more security as well as reduced energy use. Poorly designed lighting relies on brighter lights to overcome the shortcomings in the design. The result is deeper shadows in the unlit areas, which can provide cover for those with bad intent.
This is a very local issue... maybe a good way to get more involved in politics and make a difference. You can contact your local town or city council, mayor, zoning commission, etc. A lot of localities are addressing this issue with zoning regulations that "encourage good lighting practices such that lighting systems are designed to conserve energy and money, while increasing nighttime safety, utility, security and productivity."
AL Gore
I guess AL Gore should run for president winning the Nobel Peace Prize and all , but how doe he support the wild life and marine engineers for protecting wildlife
I agree!!
I agree that the Algore should run for the President winning the Nobel Prize and all. Still lot can be done for the wild life.
Regards,
Nepali Songs
Lets be Connected!!
more warming on the rise
Those horrid Martians. It's their fault -- now the whole world is warming.
http://www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=17977
http://illconsidered.blogspot.com/2006/02/theres-global-warming-on-mars-...
And now, finally, folks are
And now, finally, folks are starting to think about it and it turns out that not only do we waste electricity, burn coal, but the environment pays by disrupting the natural circadian cycle to cause birds to fly into the night lights, mess with the reproductive cycles of of turtles and indications are that it can even cause cancer in human beings.
nys regents | regents exam | math b regents
Use Wikipedia photo
Just as a technical note, I think you should reference a Wikipedia photo for the full-cutoff light fixture. (See the Light pollution article for a comparison of full cutoff vs. non full cutoff). These pictures are free and stable, and in your case there is a major third advantage: at first glance I'd wondered whether you were trying to sell some kind of new product from that particular company, and only after looking at the picture did I realize it was merely an example of something I'd seen all the time.
By the way, that Wikipedia article looks like it has some serious bias to the wrong side, in my opinion. Still, the stuff that they talk about with the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America guidelines needs careful examination and rebuttal.
ILS
The Illuminating Engineering Society is made up of mostly Lighting professionals.
Some of these folks are doing good work, the rest, sadly are interested in Lighting Sales not making sure that we efficiently light and sadly, they have taken over the International Dark Sky Association for the most part.
Will to Act
This seems like a fair straight forward solution. Now just getting the will to act so to speak.
_______________________________________________
Nelson Jacobsen
Washington DC
Will to act
Thank you Nelson:)
Putting on this Al Gore.org website is a new start, hopefully , when the Vice President announces he will make this a priority along with all the other ways of reducing the carbon footprint.
I'm busy with my meetup tonight but there is a second part which is just as important.
Stay tuned!