Dark Sacred Night – An Award Winning Documentary About Light Pollution

“Dark Sacred Night” is a special project of the Princeton University Office of Sustainability. The film is only 15 minutes long. Please watch it and reflect on how lucky we are to live in Charlestown where we can still see the Milky Way.

From the Press Release:

More than 80 percent of the world’s population, and 99 percent of Americans and Europeans, now live under light polluted skies. Many people live and die without ever seeing the Milky Way.
 
Princeton University astrophysicist Gaspar Bakos wants to change that. He is one of a growing number of experts championing simple, commonsense changes to outdoor lighting that can dramatically reduce light pollution.
 
As Bakos teaches, light pollution is a problem that impacts far more than astronomical research and stargazers. New studies show that excessive amounts of outdoor lighting contribute to a range of human health problems, squander energy, and have a dramatic negative impact on wildlife, particularly birds and insects.
 
Bakos’s approach is to promote change one streetlight at a time. Simple solutions to light pollution can be summed up in a few words: make lights dimmer, shield lights so they only shine downward, and use warm-colored lightbulbs.
 
In Princeton, New Jersey, where Bakos lives and works, he dreams of a park set aside for dark sky viewing, where all surrounding lights are muted and properly shielded. By setting a good example, he hopes other communities will be inspired to do the same.

Visit Our “Charlestown Dark Sky” Page For More On The Light Pollution Issue