Eyes on the Sky: Sept 24 thru Sept 30

[magic612]

No telescope? No problem! This week's Eyes on the Sky takes a tour through the constellations and brighter stars of autumn, along with pointing out the naked eye and telescopic planets' locations too.

[paul schofield]

Great informative post as usual, thanks and congratulations to Bristol.

[Jiggy 67]

Fab video, can't believe the fact about Bristol.....Dark Sky campainers (all of us) should be shouting that from the roof tops!!

[JamesM]

Hi David and again many thanks for an enthusiastic video with lots of information. Not quite sure when Bristol turned off all its lights (maybe I'm going to bed to early! ) but they have since changed their minds due to too many residents complaining that it might encourage burglary and anti-social behaviour - well at least they tried and it would have as a minimum have saved the local council some money. We have elections for a Mayor in November so I might be knocking on his door to bend his ear in the direction of dark skies.

Again many thanks David for your hard work and contributions in helping people learn astronomy!

James

[magic612]

Hi David and again many thanks for an enthusiastic video with lots of information. Not quite sure when Bristol turned off all its lights (maybe I'm going to bed to early! ) but they have since changed their minds due to too many residents complaining that it might encourage burglary and anti-social behaviour - well at least they tried and it would have as a minimum have saved the local council some money. We have elections for a Mayor in November so I might be knocking on his door to bend his ear in the direction of dark skies.

Again many thanks David for your hard work and contributions in helping people learn astronomy!

James

HI James,

Here's a link to the story:

http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/Burglars-afraid-dark-Crime-falls-Bristol-street/story-13952633-detail/story.html

Apparently is was earlier in 2011. Even if they have been switched back on (based on obviously unfounded fears), the point is still valid: Crime is less with more darkness. The problem we are going to run into as amateur astronomers here is a human primal fear of the dark. We are programmed to be afraid if we cannot see well or when it is dark. But we can use this kind of factual information as evidence to, at the very least, argue for smarter lighting practices.

Here in the U.S. I've seen evidence of larger companies using sharp cut-off lights that don't allow light to go even horizontally. Parking lots use fewer lights, and are still well-lit. Clearly it saves money and still provides safety. The problem is that homeowners and some other business "didn't get the memo," and keep putting up more and more lights - ALWAYS ON! - that just blast light everywhere, including up.

We still have an uphill battle, but we all need to get involved and start talking to our local politicians, friends and neighbors about these issues. I include these "dark sky facts" in every video so that viewers can be armed with helpful information to rebut the silly objections that most people offer up as a "defense" of nighttime lighting. The more we speak up, the more lights we'll have aimed down.