Product Description
It is only since recent years that the importance of theeffects of outdoor lighting on the night-time environment and on thephysical and mental health of humans is recognized on a wider scale.The related issue of light pollution is a particularly complex one,with potential conflicts of interest between the utilities,environmentalists, astronomers, the lighting industry and variousgovernment departments. Energy politics are always a sensitive issue,and light pollution is no exception to this rule. The effects of light pollution on flora, fauna -including humans andtheir widely varying night-time activities- are often subtle and needextensive field studies to be quantified in a sensible manner. The present conference, initiated by Commission 50 of theInternational Astronomical Union, is an attempt to bring together theastronomical community, the lighting industry, end-users, theutilities, and public authorities for a discussion and an exchange ofideas and information that will create goodwill among these groups andwill thus contribute to making the global efforts to reduce pollutionmore efficient and effective. Radio frequency pollution was also discussed in the context of radioastronomy and its efforts to create radio-quiet zones in collaborationwith the government authorities that allocate frequency bands to thevarious users -mainly the telecommunications industry- and to protectthe major planned and present radio observatories of the world. The 3-day conference was attended by more than 130 representativesfrom 12 countries of all the above-mentioned groups, and a wide rangeof topics was discussed. Some of the highlights were: The presentation of the 1st world atlas of artificial night skybrightness (Cinzano et al.); the article by the International DarkskyAssociation on their world-wide efforts to curb light pollution(Alvarez del Castillo et al.); the laws controlling light pollutionimplemented in Spain (Diaz et al.) and Chile (Sanhueza et al.), anoverview of the work on radio frequency protection of sites (Cohen etal.) and the excellent introduction to the topic from the Chileanpoint of view (Daud). Related topics in the book are light pollution education, aircraftcontrails, space advertising (with an added document provided by therelevant UN commission), and an experiment on involving the populationof an entire country in measuring sky brightness, by using theinternet and the media. The text is aimed at professionals from a wide range of disciplinesrelated to lighting and its effects on the night-time environment inthe broadest sense of the word. Lay persons interested in thisemerging multi-disciplinary field can also find much of interest inthis book. ... Read more

Product Description
Light-pollution is the modern scourge of optical astronomy. More and more observing sites are being lost as the glare of city lighting blots out the night sky. Professional astronomical observatories are located far from cities, but amateur astronomers often do not have this luxury. This book considers the two available strategies open to astronomers - get rid of the light pollution by lobbying authorities and standards organisations, and minimize its effects by using the correct instrumentation. The book contains an extensive detailed catalogue of deep-sky and other objects that - despite what one might believe - can be seen from variously light-polluted sites, for practical observers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A comprehensive, useful, much needed book
I recently started to research the subject of light pollution because I live in a fairly rural area that's being developed rapidly. I want to help educate and influence the policy makers and developers, if I can, to make smart choices regarding lighting as they plan their ball fields with stadium lights, their subdivisions, and their various towers.

I went online and discovered that there are more than a million web sites that address the subject of light pollution. More than a million sites! I had information overload big time and didn't know where to start.

Then I discovered Bob Mizon's book, Light Pollution. What a relief! It defines the problem of light pollution and gives us practical guidelines and step-by-step solutions to combat it. We've got to educate ourselves and others about the serious hazards of light pollution and what we can do about it. This book is a great resource for everyone's personal library. -- Kathleen Hawkins, president of winningspirit.com and author of Spirit Incorporated: How to Follow Your Spiritual Path from 9 to 5

Timely book on an important subject
Light pollution is -- or should be -- a concern of astronomers throughout the inhabited regions of the Earth. This is, to my best knowledge, the first book to directly address those concerns in detail.

The book is in three sections plus copious appendices and an index. The first section discusses the physiology of human vision, defines the nature and consequences (not only astronomical) of light pollution, and considers changes in attitude to and technology of lighting. This serves as an excellent introduction to the problem.

The second section shows how astronomy may be continued, despite light pollution, by technological 'fixes', such as light pollution reduction (LPR) filters and CCD imaging. One hundred objects suitable for visual observation from light-polluted skies are suggested and described. Techniques of observation in light-polluted skies are also suggested. It is this section of the book that is most likely to be criticised by those concerned that it may imply that, since astronomy in light-polluted skies is possible, the problem itself is not as great as activists suggest. I would suggest that it is only by showing people
what is visible in these skies that an interest in astronomy can be established and maintained, thus leading to (hopefully) a will to address the problem.

In the final section, the book discusses remedies; briefly these are technological (good lighting), legal (legislation to control poor lighting), and social (educating people as to the problem). The appendices that follow provide good material (including the debunking of common lighting myths) for anyone who wishes to involve him (or her) self in combating this source of aesthetic degradation.

Obviously, this book will be of great use as a 'handbook' for anyone involved in the activities of the Campaign for Dark Skies (CfDS) or the International Dark-sky Association (IDA), but its appeal is wider than that. It is also useful for those who undertake astronomy under brightly-lit skies, both as a guide to what may be achieved, but also with suggestions as to how such astronomers may help to have their skies improved. There is a slight UK emphasis, but the book has international appeal.

Shining through the lively style of the very well-written text is the author's passion for astronomy in general and his knowledge gained over many years as co-ordinator of the CfDS. The copious photographs, most of which are in colour, serve to enhance the text.

In short, this is a very good book, which is very readable, covering a subject of importance. Recommended! ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from E, published by Earth Action Network, Inc. on May 1, 2000. The length of the article is 1032 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Take Back the Night.(controlling light pollution)(Brief Article)
Author: April Reese
Publication: E (Magazine/Journal)
Date: May 1, 2000
Publisher: Earth Action Network, Inc.
Volume: 11Issue: 3Page: 22

Article Type: Brief Article

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Product Description
The surface of dry or wet asphalt roads reflect partially linearly polarised light, the degree of linear polarisation of which depends on the darkness and roughness of asphalt: the darker and/or the smoother the asphalt, the higher the p of light reflected from it. If the asphalt is sunlit and the direction of view is parallel to the solar-antisolar meridian, then the direction of polarisation of asphalt-reflected light is horizontal. In this case the asphalt surface can attract water-seeking aquatic insects, because they detect water by means of the horizontal polarisation of light reflected from the water surface. This phenomenon is called positive polarotaxis. This book proposes the use of these remedies on asphalt roads running near emergence sites of endangered aquatic insects, especially in the vicinity of wetlands, rivers and lakes. ... Read more

Product Description

This book on artificial sky glow effects on optical astronomy describes the problems that face astronomers, professionals and amateurs alike, in reducing the problems of information loss due to light pollution, as well as the problems lighting technologists face in optimising outdoor lighting installations that cause little or no light pollution. Light pollution is one of the negative side-effects of artificial outdoor lighting. the function of all outdoor lighting is to enhance the visibility or the aesthetics in the night-time environment. The light should come where it is needed. If not, it is spilled, causing economic and environmental losses as well as disturbance and discomfort.

Customer Reviews (1)

massive book, but biased
This is a book that aim to be a very complete work on light pollution. In fact it covers about every aspects of the problem. Unfortunately, even being published under the Springer 'Astrophysics and Space Science Library' it is lined up to the lighting people (designers, producers, researchers) opinions. For example, most of the suggestion given on how to limit the light pollution are taken from CIE documents, like the CIE Guidelines for minimizing sky glow. The problem is that guidelines will not allow to minimize sky glow at all. For example, almost all the luminaires are installed in what they call zone E3 and E4 (suburban and urban residential areas and city and metropolitan areas with considerable nigthtime activity). For these zones CIE Guidelines give a 15% or 25% ULR (upward light ratio). This means that things may continue in a 'business as usual' scenario.
In the chapter on the enforced laws, no mention is given on the most effective laws ever enforced to fight light pollution: some Italian regional laws. The book speaks about some proposed bill for more than a page, but it don't speak about Lombardy, Lazio, Marche, Emilia-Romagna laws that were already enforced up to four years before the book publication. Perhaps it is because these laws are really against light pollution, and, in fact, where enforced, the twofold increase of sky luminance has been stopped. ... Read more

Product Description
A Dobsonian telescope is an alt-azimuth mounted newtonian telescope design popularized by the amateur astronomer John Dobson starting in the 1960s. Dobson's telescopes featured a simplified mechanical design that was easy to manufacture from readily available components to create a large, portable, low-cost telescope. The design is intended for visually observing faint objects, a requirement where the observer needs a large objective diameter (i.e. light-gathering power) combined with portability for travel to non-light polluted locations.Dobsonians are intended to be what is generally called a "light bucket" operating at low magnification, and therefore the design omits features found in other amateur telescopes such as equatorial tracking. Dobsonians are popular in the amateur telescope making community, where the design was pioneered and continues to evolve.A number of commercial telescope makers also sell telescopes based on this design. ... Read more

Product Description
Chapters: List of Liberty Ships. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 96. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Light pollution, also known as photopollution or luminous pollution, is excessive or obtrusive artificial light. The International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) defines light pollution as: Such an approach confuses the cause and its result, however. Pollution is the adding-of/added light itself, in analogy to added sound, CO2 etc. Adverse consequences are multiple, some of them may be not known yet. Real definitions are to be, therefore, like: The U.S. National Park Service, whose Night Sky Team determined that almost every park that it surveyed has noticeable light pollution, defines the term as: Light pollution obscures the stars in the night sky for city dwellers, interferes with astronomical observatories, and, like any other form of pollution, disrupts ecosystems and has adverse health effects. Light pollution can be divided into two main types: (1) annoying light that intrudes on an otherwise natural or low-light setting and (2) excessive light (generally indoors) that leads to discomfort and adverse health effects. Since the early 1980s, a global dark-sky movement has emerged, with concerned people campaigning to reduce the amount of light pollution. Light pollution is a side effect of industrial civilization. Its sources include building exterior and interior lighting, advertising, commercial properties, offices, factories, streetlights, and illuminated sporting venues. It is most severe in highly industrialized, densely populated areas of North America, Europe, and Japan and in major cities in the Middle East and North Africa like Tehran and Cairo, but even relatively small amounts of light can be noticed and create problems. Like other forms of pollution (such as air, water,...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=18279 ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! In the field of physical security, security lighting is often used as a preventative and corrective measure against intrusions or other criminal activity on a physical piece of property. Security lighting may be provided to aid in the detection of intruders, to deter intruders, or in some cases simply to increase the feeling of safety. Lighting is integral to Crime prevention through environmental design. Some people are surprised to learn that security lighting can be counter-productive. Turning off lights halved the number of thefts and burglary in Övertorneå Sweden. A test in West Sussex UK showed that adding all-night lighting in some areas made people there feel safer, although crime rates increased 55% in those areas compared to control areas and to the county as a whole. ... Read more

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The effects of light pollution on flora, fauna -including humans and their widely varying night-time activities- are often subtle and need extensive field studies to be quantified in a sensible manner.

Some of the highlights were:
The presentation of the 1st world atlas of artificial night sky brightness (Cinzano et al.); the article by the International Darksky Association on their world-wide efforts to curb light pollution (Alvarez del Castillo et al.); the laws controlling light pollution implemented in Spain (Diaz et al.) and Chile (Sanhueza et al.), an overview of the work on radio frequency protection of sites (Cohen et al.) and the excellent introduction to the topic from the Chilean point of view (Daud).

Related topics in the book are light pollution education, aircraft contrails, space advertising (with an added document provided by the relevant UN commission), and an experiment on involving the population of an entire country in measuring sky brightness, by using the internet and the media.

The text is aimed at professionals from a wide range of disciplines related to lighting and its effects on the night-time environment in the broadest sense of the word. Lay persons interested in this emerging multi-disciplinary field can also find much of interest in this book.

Product Description
Pollution. Nonpoint source pollution, Persistent organic pollutant, Air pollution, Water pollution, Soil contamination, Litter, Radioactive contamination, Noise pollution, Light pollution, Thermal pollution, Pollutant, Regulation and monitoring of pollution, Global warming ... Read more

Product Description
Chapters: Light Pollution. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 507. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Light pollution, also known as photopollution or luminous pollution, is excessive or obtrusive artificial light. The International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) defines light pollution as: Such an approach confuses the cause and its result, however. Pollution is the adding-of/added light itself, in analogy to added sound, CO2 etc. Adverse consequences are multiple, some of them may be not known yet. Real definitions are to be, therefore, like: The U.S. National Park Service, whose Night Sky Team determined that almost every park that it surveyed has noticeable light pollution, defines the term as: Light pollution obscures the stars in the night sky for city dwellers, interferes with astronomical observatories, and, like any other form of pollution, disrupts ecosystems and has adverse health effects. Light pollution can be divided into two main types: (1) annoying light that intrudes on an otherwise natural or low-light setting and (2) excessive light (generally indoors) that leads to discomfort and adverse health effects. Since the early 1980s, a global dark-sky movement has emerged, with concerned people campaigning to reduce the amount of light pollution. Light pollution is a side effect of industrial civilization. Its sources include building exterior and interior lighting, advertising, commercial properties, offices, factories, streetlights, and illuminated sporting venues. It is most severe in highly industrialized, densely populated areas of North America, Europe, and Japan and in major cities in the Middle East and North Africa like Tehran and Cairo, but even relatively small amounts of light can be noticed and create problems. Like other forms of pollution (such as air, water, and ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=18279 ... Read more

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Light pollution. International Dark-Sky Association, Lighting, Energy conservation, Over-illumination, Skyglow, Bortle Dark-Sky Scale, Dark-sky preserve, History of street lighting in the United States, List of environmental health hazards, National Dark-Sky Week, Scotobiology, Tribute in Light. ... Read more

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142 page astronomy magazine featuring light pollution and observing objects from the city, astronomy at Biosphere 2, building a curved-vane secondary-mirror holder, using Photoshop, lots of photos, equipment reviews, and celestial information! ... Read more

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Specifies the apparatus and procedure to be used in conducting a cyclic test of the light exposure to a xenon arc or an open-flame carbon arc, and of the exposure to sulfur dioxide at a specified concentration under specified conditions of temperature and relative humidity. This test does not specify the type of test specimen and the exposure period. ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles!PLP, Polarized light pollution for the anglophones) is a subset of the various forms of Light pollution. In nature, the water and water vapor polarize the sunlight (which itself is slightly polarized). In the receiving direction and polarized photons, some species can move and precisely collect vertical or correct their course. Changes artificial polarization of the light natural or artificial light polarized source can disrupt these secondary species and ecosystems where these species play an important role (pollinator s for example). ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Science World, published by Thomson Gale on April 2, 2007. The length of the article is 2069 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Lights out : city lights are erasing the stars, wasting energy, and hurting wildlife. Find out what's being done to darken the night.(PHYSICAL LIGHT POLLUTION)
Author: Sharon Guynap
Publication: Science World (Magazine/Journal)
Date: April 2, 2007
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 63Issue: 12Page: 18(7)

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This digital document is an article from Parks & Recreation, published by National Recreation and Park Association on October 1, 2003. The length of the article is 1692 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Seeing the light: Parks and Recreation departments nationally are updating their lighting systems to reflect the public's growing concern toward light pollution.
Author: Maya Avrasin
Publication: Parks & Recreation (Magazine/Journal)
Date: October 1, 2003
Publisher: National Recreation and Park Association
Volume: 38Issue: 10Page: 46(4)

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