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Re: (meteorobs) OT-Power Crisis to reduce light pollution (somewhat)



I agree with Wayne,
For those of you who have not had success in getting people to listen to the
need for more efficient lighting (and darker skies) the following information
could be of use.   The current shortage combined with wasted electricity (=
wasted dollars)  makes this a time some more might listen.
The following info is a cut and paste from our local Astronomy club Email
network:

Subject: [rca-l] Electricity in Portland (Oregon  USA) wasted by lights shining

into the sky
Date: Wed, 10 Jan 2001 16:39:47 -0800

There is a web site that estimates electricity waste from
measurements of
satellite photos of the earth at night.
According to this web site:
http://neowg.mtk.nao.ac.jp/night/gallery/index.html
Portland's values for light pollution & electricity waste are:

Portland's outdoor lighting that is directed up to the sky & is
wasted:
22.2 million kilowatt hours per year, estimated.

This is measured from a satellite photo:
    Observed Value of       3.70 x 10^3       10^(-8) Watt  /
cm(^2)st micron
Using an area of  4918 sq. km., the light lost per sq. km is:
    (Light Energy Loss) / Area    4.51 x 10^(-3)  =    (10^6 kWh /
km^2)

The satellite night-time view they measured is at:
http://neowg.mtk.nao.ac.jp/jpg/night/19970209_USA.jpg

The paper that explains these measurements is a PDF at:
http://neowg.mtk.nao.ac.jp/night/paper/index.html

A really outstanding Italian web site on these issues:
http://debora.pd.astrodot it/cinzano/page93.html

California branch of IDA, excellent web site:
http://www.skykeepers.org/
===================
This information came from an IDA message that was reposted:

To All IDA sections and affiliates,
The following information was made available to press officers at
the
American Astronomical Society conference currently underway in San
Diego,
California. Please consider similar press releases for your own
regions and
local newspapers.
Thanks, best wishes for the new year, and keep up the great work.
Bob Gent, Public Relations Officer, International Dark-Sky
Association
www.darksky.org
******************************************************************
California Energy Dollars Wasted Into Night Sky
------------------------------------------------
[Sidebar for California Governor Gray Davis's State of the State
Address in
original release.]
With electricity prices sky high in California, where could energy
be saved?
Calculations using satellite data show millions of kilowatt hours
of
electricity being wasted into the night sky every year by poorly
designed
outdoor lighting in central California.
Japanese astronomer Syuzo Isobe uses satellite images to determine
the
amount of light sent upward from the Earth's surface. He then
calculates the
amount of electricity needed to generate this mostly wasted light.
This
information and much more can be found on the International
Dark-Sky
Association website, www.darksky.org.
"We would all win with good lighting," says IDA Executive Director
David L.
Crawford from the American Astronomical Society meeting in San
Diego. "The
benefits include energy savings as well as being able to see
better at night."
The International Dark-Sky Association seeks to preserve and
protect the
nighttime environment and our heritage of dark skies through
quality
outdoor lighting.
Source -- <http://neowg.mtk.nao.ac.jp/night/gallery/index.html>
Data compiled by and presented with Permission of Dr. Syuzo Isobe
at the
National Astronomical Observation, Japan.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
International Dark-Sky Association    www.darksky.org
ida@darksky.org
3225 N. First Ave. 1-520-293-3198
Tucson, AZ 85719




Wayne T Hally wrote:

> I found this interesting. Perhaps it's a good time to bring the waste of
> electricity through light pollution to the attention of our gummint
> officials
>
> Wayne

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