UKC

From the CPRE web site:
"Even in the depths of the countryside, genuine dark starry nights are becoming harder and harder to find. Security lights, floodlights and streetlights all break into the darkness, lighting up the surrounding area. Some of this light is necessary, in order to keep people safe on our streets – but much of it is wasting energy, increasing air pollution and disrupting local people’s sleep. Our quality of life is being reduced by light pollution.

The problem is getting worse, too. In less than a decade, between 1993 and 2000, light pollution across England increased by around a quarter (24%). The amount of truly dark sky dropped to from a sixth of the country to just over a tenth (11%). And seven per cent of our night sky – more than a twentieth – is now so light that people can see clearly."

I think a lot about light pollution, remembering as I do, the day(nights) back in the fifties and sixties when street lights went out at midnight. To me that was a magical moment when you could see the night sky as it was meant to be seen.

I often used to get up at four in the morning to go fishing. Cycling off down the road I would hear the dawn chorus. Sadly, now, birds seem unable to distinguish between night and day and nature's choristers are effectively silenced. Living in an urban area I yearn to see the night skies when I'm in the hills.

I think it's sad that many people grow up nowadays never having seen a real night sky and this, in turn, instils in people a fear of the dark.

Sadly my neighbour has just installed FOUR glaring lights on his rear elevation and, despite a six foot fence between the gardens ours is effectively floodlit most of the night

In reply to mypyrex:

I have to say I too love darkness with no light pollution but after 50k of machines and equipment were liberated from my workshop last year in the middle of the night it now has security lights, cctv and a monitored alarm. The lights allow me to see both inside and out from my phone when the alarm goes off. I know night vision would do the same but it's not as clear and when our traveling friends broke the gate and moved in to the yard down the road the only places that were not broken in to or damaged was those with lights on.

A few weeks ago despite my garden being surrounded by a 6 foot fence someone climbed on my shed and ripped off one of the roof panels from my garage and helped themselves to the stuff on the racking, no doubt clocked my motorcycle as well.
As soon as I have some spare cash I am putting the same system in at home.

In reply to mypyrex:

Sounds mad but there are increasingly few "dark" places in the States, and those that remain are closely guarded secrets, acc to The End of Night.:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/jul/14/end-night-paul-bogard-review

In reply to mypyrex:
Totally agree, last winter I visited the Dark Skies Park in Northumberland....Wow!! a magical experience.

In reply to Alan M:

I'm fortunate enough to have moved to a really dark bit of West Cumbria, and watched the northern lights from the garden.

The dark isn't a security issue, in fact it's the opposite. Unless the miscreants have some decent night vision equipment there's no chance of creeping about at night undetected , and some of my neighbours enjoy creeping about at night and bumping off the wildlife, and I know who my moneys on should a caravan utilising nomadic traveller upset them.

In reply to mypyrex:

I think the peak has less light pollution now then 20 years ago, the Sheffield steel mills really used to light up the sky.

In reply to robert-hutton:


Well that's some consolation

In reply to Dax H:

Jesus, that's not a lot of luck. I'm sure I once read about something which makes a very loud bang which could be incorporated into a security system. At least you'd scare the life out of them another time.

In reply to Ridge:
I can remember how dark it was around where I used to go on holiday near to Cockermouth, about three miles away along the river.

It was at Southwaite Mill before it all got flooded in 2007, and the owners gave up and sold it off as separate buildings.

http://www.zoopla.co.uk/property/southwaite-mill-barn/southwaite/cockermout...

I used to stay here and in the buildings to the right if you go into street view for the place.

In reply to mypyrex:

In my final year at uni I lived in a place that involved an unlit walk home which I used to thoroughly enjoy. Then street lighting was installed, much to my annoyance. I still remember the incredulity I felt when one of my housemates described it as an improvement.

Some interesting maps here...

http://www.lightpollutionmap.info/#zoom=8&lat=7691715.51885&lon=-42...
http://darksitefinder.com/maps/world.html