sean_green44•3mo agoMost Upvoted

Pro tip: Scout your astro spots for light creep before you head out

Tbh, I went back to my favorite comet viewing hill and found a new housing development flooding the sky with light. Honestly, my last set of Orion shots had this ugly yellow tint from all the street lamps. Ngl, this is getting worse fast and it's not just ruining photos. We gotta talk to our towns about switching to shielded, downward-facing lights. It'll save money on energy and keep our skies dark for everyone.

4 comments

4 Comments

blake7923mo ago

But those lights help people feel safer at night.

reesej273mo ago

In my city, they installed blinding white LED streetlights on every block last year. This fits a bigger pattern where we throw up lights to create a feeling of safety. But imo, that feeling is often just an illusion because it doesn't actually solve anything. I see it all the time, well lit areas just push problems into the next dark alley. We spend so much on lighting up streets instead of funding things that really help, like social services or community centers. It's a classic case of treating the symptom and ignoring the cause.

reese_hayes712mo ago

Actually, feeling safer isn't the same as being safer (that's a key difference a lot of people miss). Those bright lights can create a false sense of security while the real issues, like what happened to David's friend's car, still happen right under them. It just moves the trouble around instead of fixing why it happens in the first place.

davidkim3mo ago

Saw my friend's car vandalized under those new LED streetlights just last week.