Las Vegas: Brightest city in world? | Las Vegas Review-Journal Las Vegas: Brightest city in world? 5121411 The questions: How many angels can fit on the head of a pin? Are the Phillies a sure thing to win the next World Series now that they've got Nolan Ryan, Satchel Paige, Sandy Koufax and Cy Young on the staff? Is Las Vegas really the brightest spot on the planet when it's seen from space? The answers: Depends on who you ask. Seven. As you can see, the answers are all out of order, which is fitting, given that the only way you're going to get a solid answer to any of this is to make it up anyway. You see, The Associated Press sent out this image from NASA the other day. A bunch of astronauts with some free time were taking snapshots of the Earth from up there on the International Space Station. One of these pics shows Las Vegas at night. The city looks like an amoeba or something, with a bright cluster of goo in the middle and grids of lighted streets emanating out until the pitch black blackness that surrounds the city stops the light cold.

If you turn the picture just right, it looks like the face of the devil. Anywho. It's pretty much all over the Internet that Las Vegas is the brightest spot on Earth when seen from space. Blogs and news reports and writings of all types say so. The legend has become so Internet-y that it's taken as a given nowadays. Even the vaunted New York Times said so a couple of years ago. NASA itself won't commit. On its blog, the agency says this: "The Vegas Strip is reputed to be the brightest spot on Earth due to the concentration of lights on its hotels and casinos." Reputed to be? Sounds kinda weasely, dudn't it, coming from a group of "reputed" scientists? So we brought in the big guns to answer the question. First up is the International Dark Sky Association (totally serious here). That's a bunch of people who hate light pollution so much, they formed a group so they can hate it in unison. "If you guys aren't the brightest, the only other place I can think of is Shanghai or Hong Kong," says Johanna Duffek, the group's outreach and education coordinator.

She's talking about cities, by the way, with millions more people than Las Vegas has squished into smaller spaces. She turns from the phone for a minute to consult a buddy, presumably the expert of all experts. There is mumbling in the background. The word "Luxor" is overheard. "You tie with Shanghai," she says. So there's your verdict. We tie with the most populous city in the world's most populous country for brightness. Which has got to make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Presently, Dale Etheridge, director of the planetarium at the College of Southern Nevada, calls us back. "Not really," is his answer. Which is disappointing. We thought we had this one solved. "We're probably the most noted for the egregious use of light, and we're brighter in light per square mile," he says, but places like Los Angeles put out way more light than we do. Yes ... but ... the title ... brightest city in the world ... ! "We have areas that are as bright as any other city, but ... ," he says, obviously making a weak attempt to mollify. We're not going to add the gibberish he said after the "but." It hurts too much.

So, how about those Phillies, huh? Contact reporter Richard Lake at rlake@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0307. Cities at Night: The View from Space : Feature Articles by Cindy Evans & Will Stefanov • design by Robert Simmon • April 22, 2008 To an observer in space, humanity’s footprints on the surface of the Earth are large and varied. They include the regular patterns of irrigated cropland, straight lines of roads and railways running across continents, reservoirs on river systems, and the cement rectangles of ports and seawalls along coastlines. But what about humanity’s signature footprint—cities? By day, cities viewed from space can blend into the countryside, or appear as gray smudges, depending on the style of development and size of the urban area. Looking east from a location southwest of Ireland, an astronaut took this nighttime panorama of population centers in Ireland and the United Kingdom. Image ISS016-E-27034 was taken on February 1, 2008, using a 28 mm lens.

At night however, city lights present the space observer spectacular evidence of our existence, our distribution, and our ability to change our environment. A few years ago, NASA and NOAA joined forces to present the first world map of the nighttime Earth using 9 months of data collected by the DMSP (Defense Meteorological Satellite Program) satellite from an altitude of 830 kilometers (1 kilometer is 0.62 miles) above Earth. That “Night Lights” map, widely distributed on the Internet, helped many people visualize the world’s distribution of people and cities. Astronauts circling the Earth have the wonderful vantage point of observing the nighttime Earth from 350-400 kilometers above the surface, taking in whole regions at once. Onboard cameras and a bit of experimentation allow astronauts to take highly detailed images of our cities at night and share them with the rest of us. Chicago, Illinois, is home to roughly three million people, but the wider metropolitan area includes nearly 10 million. By day (top), the cement-colored urban center of the city blends almost imperceptibly into the gray-green colors of suburbs and then farmland. By night (lower), the region’s ten million people cannot be missed.

ISS007-E-16747 (top) was taken on October 8, 2003, with a 50 mm lens. ISS007-E-16525 (bottom) was taken on October 7, 2003, with a 50 mm lens. But taking pictures in the dark is difficult at best, made even more difficult by the fact that the International Space Station moves more than 7 kilometers per second (15,659 miles per hour) relative to Earth’s surface. With daylight illumination, an onboard camera can be set to take an image with an exposure time of just 1/500 of a second. With the Earth’s surface in darkness, night images of cities require much longer exposure times. As the Space Station (or Space Shuttle) flies over Earth, however, the city the astronaut is trying to photograph will move across the camera’s field of view while the shutter is open—a recipe for blurry images. The longer the exposure, the more motion blurring there will be. Orange sodium vapor lights illuminate the port facilities of Long Beach, California, supporting the round-the-clock operations of one of the world’s busiest commercial cargo ports.

Image ISS016-E-27162 was taken on February 4, 2008, using the 400 mm lens, providing superior resolution. In late 2002 and early 2003, astronaut Don Pettit, part of International Space Station Expedition 6, spent some time accumulating spare parts from around the space station, and constructed a device called a barn-door tracker. A barn-door tracker is a camera mount commonly used by astronomers and photographers on the ground to capture images of stars and planets in the night sky. The camera is mounted on a hinged platform that can be moved very slowly and precisely (by turning a knob). On the ground, the device allows photographers to compensate for the rotation of the Earth relative to the stars. In space, it allows astronauts to compensate for the movement of the Space Station relative to the Earth below. The careful coordination keeps the targeted city in the same position in the camera’s field of view during the long exposure, even though both the station and Earth’s surface are moving. Pettit’s tracker and nighttime photography techniques produced hundreds of images of cities from around the world that had estimated resolutions (level of detail) of about 60 meters.

Since then, a few other crew members have been able to successfully master night photography techniques. In late 2007 through early 2008, Expedition 16 Flight Engineer Dan Tani acquired a number of striking images of cities at night, including some exciting images taken with the longer, 400 mm lens, producing images with an estimated ground resolution of less than 10 meters. Don Pettit built and installed a “barn-door tracker” to enable him to take nighttime photographs from the International Space Station. Astronauts use the tracker to keep a camera steady during long exposures while the station moves above the Earth’s surface. Image ISS006-E-44299 was taken on April 5, 2003. Recently, Don Pettit assembled a sequence of several of the most striking images of city lights at night into an animated “world tour.” This video (see below), produced entirely by Pettit, takes you on a quick trip comparing cities from different regions, all viewed from the International Space Station. Dan Tani, recently aboard the International Space Station as a member of Expedition 16, extended Don Pettit’s techniques for photographing city lights.

He has taken nighttime photographs with a resolution of better than 10 meters (about the length of a bus) using a 400 mm lens. Image ISS016-E-026454 was taken on January 30, 2008. From a geographic perspective, cities at night tell different stories about a region. City lights provide sharp boundaries that delineate the densest concentrations of people, a characteristic that has been used to assess the effect of urbanization on Earth’s ecosystems. The increased detail of city lights available from astronaut photography can help refine urban boundaries defined from satellite data. Transportation corridors and major commercial development, such as ports, shopping centers, and cultural icons—like the Las Vegas strip—jump out of the landscape. Download this video in high-resolution (126 MB MPEG), web-resolution (39 MB QuickTime) or view the script . In many cities, neighborhoods of different generations can be distinguished by the lighting color and patterns along their streets. In many North American cities, older neighborhoods have less regular street patterns and light green mercury vapor lighting, while newer cities, especially in the western United States, have street patterns aligned to the compass directions and use orange sodium vapor lighting.

The major Denver street patterns are rectilinear, aligned north-south and east-west. The “Vegas Strip” of casinos and hotels—reputed to be the brightest spot on Earth—stands out in the center of this image due to both its brightness and its diversity of light colors. Image ISS016-E-27168 was taken on February 4, 2008, using the 400 mm lens. Cities from different regions of the Earth are also identified by differences in their nighttime lights. Japanese cities glow a cooler blue-green than other regions of the world. Newer developments along the shore of Tokyo Bay are characterized by orange sodium vapor lamps, while the majority of the urban area has light green mercury vapor lamps. The streets of Denver, Colorado, are aligned with the cardinal directions. Image ISS016-E-26150 was taken on January 31, 2008, with an 85 mm lens. Border cities like Ciudad Juaréz, Mexico, and El Paso, Texas, illustrate different city patterns side-by-side, suggesting cultural influences on the development and growth of cities and infrastructure.

Ciudad Juaréz, supports at least 1,300,000 people. On the U.S. side of the Rio Grande, El Paso is marked by the brightly-lit Interstate Highway I-10 that cuts across the city. Although the area of El Paso, with an estimated population of slightly more than 600,000 is roughly on the order of the area of built-up Ciudad Juaréz, the density of settlement evidenced by the distribution of lights, is much less. Like many Japanese cities, the night lights of Tokyo, Japan, have a blue-green glow that comes from mercury vapor lighting. Image ISS016-E-27586 was taken on February 5, 2008. The rapid growth in Jiddah and Mecca in Saudi Arabia can be mapped from the lighting patterns, and the road connecting them stands out as a bright string in the surrounding dark desert. More densely populated Ciudad Juaréz, Mexico, is separated from El Paso, Texas, by the Rio Grande. Image ISS006-E-44123 was taken on April 7, 2003, with an 85 mm lens.

What’s next? Earth is becoming an urban planet. As more and more people move to cities, and the surrounding rural and suburban areas are increasingly developed, the pattern of lights in cities around the world will change. Individual city footprints will coalesce into ever larger bright blobs. More roads will connect those cities to form an illuminated, lace-like web on the habitable parts of the continents. Nighttime photographs from astronauts on upcoming missions will document these changes, providing dramatic illustrations for the continuing story of humanity’s footprints on the Earth. Astronaut photographs are provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations experiment, and the Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, Johnson Space Center. The images in this article have been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast. Lens artifacts have been removed. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. Text and captions by Cynthia A. Evans and William L. Stefanov, NASA-JSC.

Astronaut Photography Links Las Vegas is the brightest city in the world as seen from? | Cafe Arjun - 15 times WordPress Top Blog! Las Vegas is the brightest city in the world as seen from? by cafearjun These Marriott World of Rewards questions are becoming simpler and simpler and I’m losing the whole “what’s the next challenge” feeling. Yesterday they asked where Mozart was born, the day before what are people from Beunos Aires called. I mean c’mon, an online quiz has gotta be ridiculously tough to look up. Dunno what you guys feel. Anyway, Today’s Question: Las Vegas is the brightest city in the world as seen from? Answer: Space It had to be either space or moon. It can’t be moon, because it’s too far away and the only man made structure seen from the moon is Great wall of China. Wikipedia confirms this. For those who thought about airplanes, there’s a rating of brightest cities as seen from airplanes and even in that listing, Las Vegas closely follows London.

Brightest cities in America NASA Imagery – Las Vegas as seen from space Infrared view of Las Vegas from space The Sin city – Las Vegas Because Las Vegas is situated in the middle of nowhere, when aircrafts fly over Las Vegas, the pilots see a big blob of light in the middle of darkness. It’s not the same from space. Generally infrared or other technology is used to find which is the brightest city. Las Vegas has heavy external lighting all through the strip and this Sin City is thus the brightest city in the World, when seen from space! Like this: 45 of the Brightest Cities in the World, Photographed By One Woman 45 of the Brightest Cities in the World, Photographed By One Woman Go to permalink Satellites have given us a huge amounts of information about Earth—including the fact that many of our cities are so blinding lit, they're visible from space. Those radiant cities are the subject of Lux, a photo essay by photographer Christina Seely . Advertisement Lux is a taxonomy of light pollution: A look at the three regions of the world that produce the most extreme light pollution around the globe, based on NASA's observations.

It took Seely, who is based in San Francisco, five years to visit dozens of different cities across Europe, Japan, and the U.S., seeking out locations along coastlines and on hills where she could capture the glow from afar. "These economically and politically powerful regions not only have the greatest impact on the night sky but this brightness reflects a dominant cumulative impact on the planet," Seely explains in her artist's statement, continuing: Advertisement For most of human history, man-made light has signified hope and progress within local and global arenas. In this project, light also paradoxically denotes an index of the added complex negative human impacts on the health and future of the planet. It tends to get ignored in the face of more pressing crises, but darkness is a disappearing luxury in our world. Our skies are so bright these days, many kids haven't actually ever seen Milky Way. In fact, we're forgetting what darkness is even like . Check out some of Seely's photographs below, or snap up her new Monograph . [ Christina Seely ; The New Yorker ] Madrid, Spain: Metropolis 40°25' N 3°41' W.

Paris, France: Metropolis 48° 52' N 2° 19' E. Kyoto, Japan: Metropolis 35°00'N 135°45'E. Tokyo, Japan: Metropolis 35° 41'N 139° 46'E. Chicago, Illinois: Metropolis 41°54'N 87°39'W. Las Vegas, Nevada: Metropolis 36°10' N 115°8' W. London, England: Metropolis 51° 29' N 0° 0' W. New York, New York: Metropolis 40°47' N 73°58' W. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Metropolis 52° 23' N 4° 55' E. Milan, Italy: Metropolis 45° 27' N 9° 10' E. Nagoya, Japan: Metropolis 35° 10'N 136° 50'E.

Gear from Kinja Deals The Brightest Spots on Earth – SciTechBlog - CNN.com Blogs April 24th, 2008 2:06 pm ET This is interesting entry. I'm glad to know that the issue of light-pollution is being taken seriously. It's always bothered me when I look toward the heavens and can see only three or four stars. The writing style could be improved though; Perhaps a little more copy editing before posting would help. The first sentence has some problems–Tokyo is listed twice, and it should read: "bright spots" not "bright spot". Beginning sentences with "But" instead of joining the sentences together properly makes it hard for me to read. I found myself getting hung up on the English and grammar issues too much. There are still readers out here who pay attention to such pedantic details, and like to read well-written quality content without stopping and wondering why things are capitalized when they should not be and why it's "it's" with an apostrophe intead of "its". -Shawn April 24th, 2008 2:48 pm ET Good blog, but it is far more than an aesthetic problem.

Artificial light erases nocturnal habitat. Many desert creatures rely on darkness, and lights can disorient migrating birds (as it does hatchling sea turtles). The energy waste is not trivial, but the Dept. of Energy has paid little attention to the issue. And while the strip of Las Vegas is indeed bright, the light output of the city is not atypical. Most cities waste similar amounts of light but using fixtures that shine sideways or upwards, or simply using too bright of a bulb. April 24th, 2008 2:55 pm ET Sounds like typical left wing liberal crap. Spending millions of dollars taking pictures of light and having Congress debate on whether or not it should be called pollution. Here's an idea. Save the money or use it on better ideas. I am sure there are some better ideas out there. I know! How about feeding the poor? Housing the poor? Use the money to educate them so they can actually EARN a living instead of living off of tax payer money. When will the libs in this country wake up and realize that spending money on crap like this is a waste!

April 24th, 2008 3:58 pm ET This is NOT left wing liberal crap. This appeals to people of all persuasions, and it's something that a) isn't that hard to do, and b) isn't that expensive to take care of. I think recycling is the same kind of thing...it's more about changing habits than anything else. Besides the aesthetic element (which is considerable) and the biological issue (which is empirically supportable), at the very least it's the right thing to focus on to reduce energy use and dependence on foreign energy sources. I didn't use to think anything of christmas lights being on all night long, but now it seems pretty pointless and stupid. Again, it's just not that hard to make a positive change. Keep up the good work, Dark Sky Association!! April 24th, 2008 6:19 pm ET Shawn, while I generally agree with you about poor grammar and it hindering the legibility of many articles, you're exaggerating way too much. Sure, a sentence shouldn't be started with the word "but", however, this isn't an essay or a term paper; it's a blog.

Sometimes it's easier to follow when you break up one really long sentence and make it two thoughts. Also, the use of "it's" with an apostrophe is correct. Since the only use is in "...chances are it's been a while...", he's saying "it has" hence the contraction with the apostrophe is correct. Having said that, while light pollution is pretty bad in most cities, it's a little more complex than what is being portrayed here. Simply blocking the light going towards the sky would do nothing to reduce the energy used. Light pollution is made worse by the other pollutants that are in the air, because the light headed towards the sky reflects off all the smog. When one is lighting up words on a sign and wants them to be visible from two blocks away, there's nothing that directing that light will do to reduce the energy needed. Putting a reflector above "Eat At Joe's" to redirect light from the sky out to the street isn't going to make the letters more legible. While the light may be more concentrated and visible from a larger distance, all people will see is a blob of light. Tiffany, the girl who loves stars.

April 24th, 2008 6:39 pm ET I find this amazingly true. I live in an urban area, near a highway, and all I see when I look into the skies is an orangy glow. The sky resembles sunset at three in the morning! Why have so much unnecessary lighting even when no one is near to use it? On some roads, the contrast of the darkness of the night and the lights hurt your eyes. So why have that? And why increase global warming using energy on something that isn't needed? Some might say that the International Dark-Sky Association is wasting time and money on something unnecessary. But remember this: Using less energy will save the money needed to use that energy. It's good for all of us. Props to the International Dark-Sky Association! They will help save the Earth from pollution and global warming, and let us see the stars. -Tiffany, 13, who loves stars. April 25th, 2008 12:19 am ET Light pollution isn't a political issue. It's more of a conservation issue just like historical or wildlife preservation.

And saving taxpayer's dollars by not installing glare-bomb lighting doesn't make it a "liberal" or "conservative" idea; it's just plain common sense to have streetlights shine down toward the streets, and not through second-story windows where people are trying to sleep or uselessly into space. Part of the reason people don't miss the stars in the cities is because they've never SEEN them. If you've been out in the desert, or along the lonelier peaks of the Appalachians like Spruce Knob, the heavens are just awe-inspiring and beyond description, yet it's being stamped out by upwards- and sideways-shining lights that are doing no one any good. Every year the nighttime skyglow gets worse. I live in Ohio, and one of my favorite stargazing spots is in Coshocton County. You can see the skyglow from Columbus off to the southwest. That is, SIXTY MILES to the southwest! From the summit of Spruce Knob, WV, you can now even see a faint glow from the D.C. area, even though our nation's capitol is 140 miles away.

Even Las Vegas has a light dome that's visible 180 miles away from the Grand Canyon. It's not just a case of getting away from the city to see stars; there's going to come a point where there's no place to run and the heavens are lost to a senseless, perpetual orange gloaming. April 25th, 2008 2:59 am ET Thanks for posting an item on light pollution. Many people are still unfamiliar with light waste and why it is such an important matter to address. Light pollution may be an "aesthetic issue", but there is more to it than just a pretty sky. The cultural and scientific value of a dark night sky is also lost or threatened by light pollution. Our ancestors used the stars to manage farming, plan ritual ceremony, keep time, and navigate across uncharted land and water. Scientific assets like Mt. Wilson outside LA or Yerkes Observatory in Wisconsin were forced to discontinue research due to urban development and the encroachment of unchecked lighting. In the nearly 130 years since the invention of the incandescent light bulb, what once was a luxury for the wealthy has become a useful necessity for our modern lifestyle.

But, light waste shows how careless and frivolous much of that use can be. Beyond safety and security, many commercial applications of light intended to drive sales are wasteful. Think billboards or car dealerships. Then, there is lighting as architecture. Some members of the design community use light to enhance structural elements. But, improperly aimed and unshielded light that spills into the sky is not "Green design". So what's the big deal? Stray photons never hurt anybody, right? Medical research is starting to show that we humans need darkness to stay healthy. Many know that the hormone Melatonin has a role in regulating our sleep/wake cycle, but now it seems to be responsible for keeping growth of certain cancer cells in check. Studies seem to indicate that urban populations and graveyard shift workers show a higher incidence of breast and prostate cancers. Too much light and light at the wrong time can kill. Each of us can make a difference in the effort to reduce light pollution and light waste.

Shield lights so they don' t create dazzling or hazardous glare, properly aim lights to prevent light emission above a horizontal plane and light trespass into adjacent property, install motion sensors to activate light only when needed, use more efficient lights like compact flourescent bulbs and turn of lights not in use. More light is not always better. –Peter Lipscomb April 25th, 2008 9:01 am ET Possible inclusion in the EPA's 2008 Report on the Environment: "Mr. Miller noted that the SAB had received several public comments submitted on the issue of light pollution (see Attachment M). Several members of the public joined the call and oral comments were offered by Leo Smith, Robert Wagner, and Stephen Davis. They noted that the issue of light pollution has been overlooked by U.S. EPA, but a number of state agencies have recognized it as a serious consequence. The commenters encouraged inclusion of light pollution in the 2007 U.S. EPA Report on the Environment. Dr. Morgan asked the commenters if they were concerned with light or also radio frequencies. The commenters said that they were concerned with light. They are concerned about ecological effects from light pollution, not astronomical effects.

Mr. Wagner elaborated that he was concerned about light pollution in Federal class I areas underneath the Clean Air Act (CAA). Mr. Stephen Davis remarked that complaints about light pollution started in the early 1900s, around 1910. He suggested that energy, health, commerce, and defense should all be involved in addressing this issue. He suggested that U.S. EPA provide information on this issue, using information distributed by the state of Vermont as an example. The Board members agreed that a sentence should be added to the air quality section of the draft SAB report on the issue of light pollution" April 25th, 2008 9:51 am ET Wow. I stirred up some people, didn't I? Here's my whole point. Democrats always want to tax people to death and give the money away to others. They want to spend money on ideas that seem to make sense. This one seems to make basic sense, turn off lights, save electric and thus save energy and pollute less. My problem is that these people spent probably millions of dollars thus far just to come to this conclusion. Democrats always say we need to reduce our dependence on foreign oil.

While I ALSO believe we must do this and that we should spend some money in order to do it, I believe that the money is being mis-managed on a basic level. We all know (even Republicans) that oil is NOT limitless and that we will eventually have to come up with better sources of energy if we are to survive. Why not drill for oil off the coast or in Alaska? The libs and special interest environmental groups giving them money are keeping us from tapping into the large oil reserves in the Gulf, but Hugo Chavez and castro are currently working on a plan to tap into them. How is allowing Cuba and Venezuela (Spelling? Sorry) to drill for oil off of our coast reducing our dependence on foreign oil? If done properly and safely, it will not harm the environment. At least it will not harm it anymore than we already are! Its not a long term fix, but it will buy us a little time. Why not use nuclear energy? The left wing liberals always say that we should save the environment and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. I simply believe that we can't have both at the same time. Its not a perfect world we live in. We can't have our cake and eat it too!

A simple analogy to this whole mess is building a four lane suspension bridge across a creek that is 6 feet wide to a child's clubhouse, when all that is needed is a board and a couple pieces of rope to hang onto! Wake up. We are running this planet into the ground and wasting billions of dollars doing it. April 25th, 2008 9:57 am ET One more thing. I also have switched my entire house to flourescent lighting to save ME money. I also have added insulation to my house to do the same thing. The best incentive for people to save energy is to make it profitable for them to do so. Instead of spending millions of dollars to come to conclusions we already know about, how about using that money to buy and give away hybrid cars to some tax payers? This would do MUCH more to reduce oil consumption than wasting time on arguing about it and doing studies. April 25th, 2008 12:00 pm ET As an astronomer, light pollution is a key issue for me. It of course has a very real environmental impact.

Switching to energy efficient bulbs, turning off lighted signage late at night, and installing fixtures which direct light to the ground are easy and well worth the effort. Stories like the one above help raise much needed awareness. But in addition to environmental concerns, as Peter Lipscomb already pointed out, we've had to close major observatories because of light pollution – observatories with fantastic (and expensive!) telescopes. Kitt Peak National Observatory is more and more suffering from the effects of light pollution. Our top astronomers now travel to places like Chile to observe. Ernie, I think you're a bit off topic and a bit misinformed (e.g. you ask "Why not use nuclear energy?" but most "libs" do support this and in fact most republicans don't). I'd like to specifically address your comment "My problem is that these people spent probably millions of dollars thus far just to come to this conclusion." This is entirely false. The International Dark Sky Association has been in operation for twenty years and "As a membership-based organization, IDA receives most of its funding from membership dues." You can even check IDA's tax returns to see just how much money it spends.

I think we should always keep a close eye on government spending, but, in this case, the cost associated is not even a drop in the bucket. Additionally, the Tucson, Arizona metropolitan area has been a leader in enacting outdoor lighting codes that keep nighttime skies dark. National measures could easily be modeled on these. And to this comment: "The best incentive for people to save energy is to make it profitable for them to do so. " I completely agree, but people need to be convinced that the changes they make will indeed save them money. They also need to know what specific changes they can make (flourescent lighting is not always the best/most cost effective option by the way). Spending for education and research in the area of light pollution is necessary and easily offset by the savings (both literally and for the environment and scientific research). And trust me, there's no huge and costly government agency dealing with this issue. It's relatively small organizations (most notably the IDA) who are pushing for these reforms.

(And, of course, individual astronomers like me whose work depends so much on dark skies!) April 25th, 2008 3:35 pm ET "The lowest point in San Jose, CA is at sea level at the San Francisco Bay in Alviso; the highest is 4,372 feet (1,333 m) at Copernicus Peak, Mount Hamilton, which is technically outside the city limit. Due to the proximity to Lick Observatory atop Mount Hamilton, San Jose has taken several steps to reduce light pollution, including replacing all street lamps and outdoor lighting in private developments with low pressure sodium lamps. To recognize the city's efforts, the asteroid 6216 San Jose was named after the city." -Wikipedia article (San Jose) I think San Jose is a fine example of how a city can change it's lighting infrastructure, to reduce light pollution. Compared to most large cities in the U.S. I have been to, San Jose is at the top of the list when it comes to reducing light pollution. When I lived there in the 1970s, we had gold skies at night. Now, you can see the stars again.

April 26th, 2008 4:47 pm ET OK here is my take on it. 1. Seeing stars are important. If anything, we need to familiarize ourselves, as soon we will have to go to space to get more resources. 2. The comments that cities are "wasting energy" or "polluting the sky", I disagree a little. They're doing that for a purpose. If you don't have that neon sign saying "McDonalds" or "OPEN" or whatever, you don't know they're Mackidy, or if Mackidy is open, so you don't buy food from the burger joint. We don't "waste" if it serves a purpose. Luxor Las Vegas doesn't beam that god damn blinding light to the sky so they can pollute the sky, they do it because it will attract high class gamblers so there is Las Vegas to visit, not just a desert full of truckers. 3. It's called "city" and not rural farms for a reason. There are lights there. 4. If you want to see the stars, get out of the city and camp in a cabin somewhere in national parks. 5.

Basically dont be too narrow minded and resort to name calling whenever we have a problem. Provide a workable solution. If businesses need to attract customers at night without light, please do provide a solution. We can all just go back to savannah and live in our caves otherwise. April 27th, 2008 4:30 pm ET Chicago has actually made a lot of improvements on light pollution. They now have a program called Lights Out Chicago that was started when scientists at the Field museum discovered that when the lights were on at McCormick place there were 80% more birds killed than when the lights were out during the migratory seasons. All of the skyscrapers and most of the loop now have a lights out or lights dimmed during at least 4 months of the year and more and more buildings sign on each year when they see the energy savings. It is estimated that as many as ten thousand (10,000) birds are saved each year. I would love to see the night shots from space that actually show a month when the Lights Out Chicago program is in place vs the months where it isn't, maybe then we could get more buildings to sign on to the program year round.

April 27th, 2008 5:23 pm ET What political issue is there regarding this, when I'm quite certain that both democrats and republicans alike have the aptitude for star gazing, if not a fondness for it. Cities have so much artificial light that even rural areas suffer as a result. (How about we prefer "too much artificial light" for terminology since "light pollution" seems to have the derogatory affect of making this a political issue first when it is really secondary to understanding the issue at hand.) If there are ways to effectively and efficiently limit certain lighting without it costing the businesses that they may serve (such as signs), it makes perfect sense that we do so. If we can also save money, it makes even more sense that we do so. If most people like to actually look at stars, we would be narcissistic idiots to deny ourselves such a luxury on the basis of our politics. April 28th, 2008 8:00 pm ET I actually sell lighting fixtures. Although I am pretty new to the lighting industry, I do feel that dark sky approved fixtures are the way to go.

The problem is that the dark sky fixtures are usually more expensive, so specifiers are less likely to select something with a flat lens that would be dark sky approved, and instead go with a round drop lens (for outdoor site lighting). In order to get more dark sky approved lights, municipalities are going to have to take the steps in order for this to happen by regulating dark sky approved fixtures to be used. This sounds like a good idea, but having "Bob the Deli Owner" try to legislate something like this presents a problem: people not in a technical, engineering field don't know what they are doing! What ends up are towns and counties with ludicrous lighting regulations that are done only to silence the protesters, but that in turn frustrates engineers because they can't get the acceptable IES footcandle requirements for adequate nighttime walking or safety. The end result? People can't see too well in the night, muggers come out of the woodworks, liability for people falling. Cities and municipalities need to embrace people that deal in these technical fields in order to address the issue of energy waste and dark sky light pollution.

Planners and lawmakers need to sit down with some engineers who are members of respected lighting organizations like the IES or the IESNA. Even contact the RPI Lighting Research Center! Just don't make ridiculous laws or regulations to silence any critics for the heck of it; take the appropriate steps to help the population see better on the ground, and in the skyð April 29th, 2008 10:01 am ET what about idiot posturing liberal pollution, like this absurd article which wasted time, ink, paper, trees, the energy to print and manufacture and distribute and maintain in a server? I'd call this, not only a form of pollution, but the cause of a syndrome and a disability....in fact, it attacks my civil liberties and causes me pain and suffering...I'm calling my liberal lawyer immediately, and we're going to take this before a liberal judge who was educated in the liberal education system....maybe that guy who sued the dry cleaner for tens of millions of dollars for ruining his pants.

you people disgust me and I take great joy in burning fossil fuel April 29th, 2008 10:25 am ET Why does everything have to be tied into global warming. Why cant the merits of the issue stand on their own. Because the majority of people dont care. So we got to scare them to care. Global warming is an issue but I beleive it is our sun that is having the biggest impacton our planet, not the clean burning coal plants, not the improved mileage cars we drive and not the hydro electric dams that produce the vast majority of my electricity. I chose to live in an urban area because it is important for me to live where I can see the stars. Where I can take my kids out on a warm August night and show them metior showers and the full moon and explore the planets with the naked eye. Places like this are in abundance, but you have to chose to live there. No amount of goverment regulation will get you there. The fact is the majority of lights that are on provide either a sence of security or they are for vanity. Most people chose to live in cities because they are close to school, work and the conviences of the modern world.

You would need a paridigm shift of biblical proportions to change this. People will be people. It is in personal responsibility that we as a society will change. Technology is not inherintly bad, just how we employ it. Get the fat politicians off their rumps and actually encoureage change instead of regulating and we will all grow together. Now if we cant just stop the killing of the whales, wouldnt this be a great place to live? April 29th, 2008 11:32 am ET The truly sad thing is, people who don't think "light pollution" is an important issue are quick to say : "if you want to see lots of stars, drive out to the country". Increasingly, one has to drive further and further away from the cities to get away from the light pollution. With today's energy costs (another reason to turn down the lights), it's not reasonable for someone to drive 4-hours round trip to stargaze. Besides, our children and grandchildren will never know the wonder of a beautiful night sky because they will look up and see nothing but bright grey washout. What is so terrible about being more responsible about nighttime lighting?

Why is it labelled a "liberal thing"? And how long will the naysayers cling to their obsolete arguments that defend the use of bright nighttime lights with no cutoffs or timers? I'd say the real issue here is not "light pollution", but the stunning ignorance of those who continue to bash the rational voices who are trying to save our night skies from oblivion. Maybe if light pollution adversely effected a person's ability to watch insipid television tripe like professional wrestling, NASCAR, or American Idol, then something would be done about this issue. Unfortunately, many Americans just don't care about an issue until it impacts them in a personal way, and since many Americans don't give a darn about the night sky (or how much of it will be left for their kids), then light pollution is not going to be taken seriously. Well, I care about what my grandkids are going to inherit. So, I say to the selfish fools who light up their yards like the sun at night, don't be so ignorant and selfish – be smarter about your lighting.

April 29th, 2008 8:10 pm ET Light pollution is a form of pollution, but compared to the other severe forms of pollution to this planet, it is insignificant. Everywhere around us, are short-term solutions to problems. The biggest problem we face and as morbid as it may sound, is society. Humans go against everything nature stands for. We keep our weak alive; we keep criminals alive; we keep our enemy alive. The rate at which we are multiplying is astronomical, and we are the true pollutants, because not only have we have forgotten to give back, but society won't allow us to give back because society as we know is, goes against nature's ways. Soon all jungles will be concrete jungles. You all are so worried about seeing the stars, while all our rivers, oceans, land, our bodies and minds are polluted? Most people won't spend the petty amount required to convert incandescent bulbs to flourescent, let alone convert their home to a smart home running on low voltage, energy efficient appliances, insulation and other features of today's smart homes.

It's not cheap people, and our government is supposed to pull a rabbit out of a hat and do this on a national scale overnight because someone suddenly blew the whistle? I wonder how many wanna-be environmentalists drive SUV's. How many don't carpool. How many boycott Chinese products. It's so easy to point fingers, but change starts within each one of us. However to make change one has to have some sort of sense. It's just a matter of time... our destiny is inevitable. April 30th, 2008 5:42 pm ET Let me appeal to your saving energy senses- 1. Billions of dollars per year in energy costs go out into SPACE, rather than toward the ground where they belong. 2. This is really a simple fix- fully shielded fixtures are the same price as unshielded fixtures- and use less energy since the light is DIRECTED –estimates are 30-40% less energy for the same illumination. 3. The problem is that the public equates more light to more safety at night- even though the light may be pointed right at you creating deep shadows on the property where criminals can hide. 4.

Many laws have been passed designating fully shielded reflective fixtures for all commercial and residential applications- however communities have been slow to enact these laws and more importantly ENFORCE the light trespass laws- and utility companies and transportation departments continue to install OLD type unshielded fixtures. Until this big waste of energy reaches a "public" critical mass - things will stay as they are now. Hopefully the news media will pick up on this energy WASTE and start covering it in prime time. February 20th, 2011 8:35 am ET [...] Photographs of Earth taken from the International Space Station reveal that the worldâs major cities are, not surprisingly, the brightest spots on Earth. The biggest offender by far, though, is Las Vegas. However, what truly is surprising is that these lights that can be seen from space are only the light that is traveling from the Earth up to the sky. This is light that is actually pointed upward that no one on Earth can actually see, and is therefore wasted energy. The International Dark-Sky Association refers to this phenomenon as âlight pollutionâ.

Not only does too much light emanating from our major cities make it difficult or impossible to view the night sky from Earth, but the wasted light that inefficiently travels up into space also contributes to real pollution. They estimate that, in the U.S. alone, several billion dollars in energy costs are wasted and an additional 38 million tons of CO2 get generated every year to produce lights that we canât even see. (source) [...] The brightest city in the World (casino, building, distance) - City-Data Forum The brightest city in the World (casino, building, distance) User Name [ Register ] Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account , you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads. View detailed profile ( Advanced ) or search site with View Poll Results: The brightest city in the World New York City Multiple Choice Poll. Voters: 122.

You may not vote on this poll Page 1 of 6 937 posts, read 516,813 times Reputation: 177 Which city do you think is the brightest (literally)? Location: City of North Las Vegas, NV 9,341 posts, read 6,441,929 times Reputation: 2357 The city of Las Vegas is in the middle of nowhere. Pilots and drivers when they approach the city can see a huge dome of light at night from a long distance away. The Luxor casino emits a light from the top of its pyramid that can be seen from out of space! This casino and the Great Wall are the only two man made things that can be seen. With all the neon and other lights and over 300 days of sunshine, Las Vegas has to be the brightest city in the world. Last edited by WildWestDude; 08-01-2008 at 09:32 AM..

Question: What is supposedly the world's brightest city, as seen from space?
Answer: Las Vegas