Losing sight of the night

By Lisa Cardy

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LIGHT is the latest environmental pest. Billions of watts of wasted light from street signs, security lights, and street lights are polluting the night sky and blocking our view of the stars.

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The campaigner bugbear is the security light, which anyone can install. These flood the night sky with a 1000-watt glare.

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The campaigners are concerned about the celestial ignorance of children growing up in floodlit cities. They're missing out on all manner of heavenly wonders, including constellations, meteors and comets. As for the infamous Milky Way, even�if you escaped to the depths of the countryside at night, you'd be lucky to get a glimpse of it.

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Railtrack even had to remove lighting from the Humber Bridge amid fears that�it would confuse migrating birds.

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Since electric street lighting first came along in the 1950s, the more powerful and widespread it has become and the less visible the night sky. The campaigners report some good news, however. The government is aware of the problem and is looking into more efficient streetlights that direct�light downwards. Railtrack and the highways agency are already installing sky friendly lighting.