More and more stars are disappearing from the night sky due to light pollution

People all over the world are watching less stars in the sky with each passing year. Observations by professional and amateur scientists around the world in recent years reveal an alarming trend: stars in the night sky are becoming increasingly difficult to see due to rapidly increasing light pollution. A new scientific study has found that before our eyes, often without us realizing it, stars are disappearing at an impressive – or rather alarming – rate.

The change in star visibility corresponds to a nearly 10% annual increase in the brightness of the night sky over the past decade. This means that a child who could see 250 stars in his area when he was born, today in the same location after 18 years he can observe maximum 100 stars.

The naked human eye should be able to see several thousand stars in a clear dark sky. Unfortunately, it is estimated that around 30% of people worldwide – almost one in three – have already lost their view of our galaxy due to light pollution, and the problem is getting worse, according to new research.

The researchers of the international scientific project Globe at Night, led by Christopher Kimba of the German Research Center for Geoscience (GFZ) in Potsdam and the University of Ruhr-Bochum, who made the relevant publication in the journal “Science”, analyzed data of the period 2011-2022 involving a total of 51,351 naked-eye star observations by humans at approximately 19,300 locations in various countries, mainly in Europe (3,700) and North America (9,500).

It was estimated that the brightness of the night sky doubled to less than eight years. The annual increase in luminosity, ranging from nearly 7% in Europe to 10% in the US, is much larger than that (about 2% per year) for the increase in artificial light based on satellite radiation measurements. This is mainly because satellites measure light pollution by mainly recording light directed towards the sky, while citizens are mainly affected by horizontal light pollution, which is the largest.

In many inhabited regions of the Earth the night sky never completely darkens, as there is a diffuse glow of artificial light in the atmosphere. This light pollution undermines the ability to observe the stars at night. The spread of LED lighting, which emits more blue light to which the eyes are more sensitive, has worsened the situation.

In addition, light pollution disrupts the natural cyclic transition from solar to starlight and back, a natural process by which biological organisms (including humans themselves) have evolved. Studies in the past have highlighted the environmental effects of artificial lighting, including for animals and insects, but also more generally for the ecosystems of Europe and other regions, as well as for human health.

RES-EMP

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