RIDING WONDER

I’ve been passionate about the night sky ever since I was a child. Back then, I could lie down in my yard in Cache Valley and see the whole Milky Way. My wonder rode on a river of starlight, to the far reaches of my imagination as my mind explored space.

Photo: Milky Way by Aaron Watson

Later in my college days I discovered the joy of backpacking into wilderness. I couldn't wait to gaze upward and receive the streams of inspiration and light that are stars. The twinkles I saw from the Pleiades, 440 light years away, started their journey of light in 1586 AD-- to find me at the moment when my brain perceived their image! I was experiencing history; journeying through time. Perhaps a solution to our broken world is at this moment traveling to us, on wings of clarity; as bright as hope.

After I graduated from Utah State University, for seven winters I lived in the "heart of darkness" at the edge of human civilization along a beautiful wildlife corridor at 8000 feet in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Bear, Cougar, Fox, Badger and Owl were frequent visitors to my yard and among those with whom I shared the land. I lived there alone; I never once left a porch light on. And every night when there wasn’t a cloud cover, the stars were bright. 

Where did light originate? We know we’re made in part, of stardust. How much of what I am seeing is outside me? How much is my own journey of inner awareness? 

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For millennia, all species including humans have relied on the natural cycles of dark and light to thrive. All species, including humans, have evolved over billions of years with only natural light sources like starlight and moonlight. 

Research has linked light pollution to cancer, insomnia, depression, obesity, and low birthweight. It’s also important for us to cultivate awareness about how artificial light impacts migratory birds, insects, plants and nocturnal animals who rely on natural light patterns to guide feeding, reproduction, and seasonal cycles. 

A common myth is that more light at night creates safer conditions. However, bright, unshielded lights can cause temporary night blindness, making it impossible to see into the shadows to detect a potential predator. And the glare of unshielded streetlights, especially in the bright (white) light spectrum, contribute to collisions with pedestrians, animals, and other cars on roadways. 

Lights Down, Stars Up: https://ies.org/lda/let-there-be-night/

The good news: Light pollution is one of the easiest environmental problems to correct. Using light at night only when we need it, choosing warmer colored lights that are fully (downward) shielded and set on timers, and limiting the brightness of lights are ways to lessen the adverse impacts of artificial light. Best of all: lights out! When we're not using light, our lights should be off.

In a world that is becoming exponentially polluted with artificial light, I am committed to do whatever I can in my lifetime to help reverse excessive artificial lighting and return to the beautiful night sky that is our birthright. Will you join me in my efforts to promote health and well-being for all species? I work in collaboration with Dark Sky Colorado (darkskycolorado.org) and offer educational presentations to libraries, schools, city councils, youth councils, church groups etc. in both Utah and Colorado.  

For more information, contact Jessa Young at 435-800-9166.

Artificial Night Sky Brightness 1950-2025: https://sierranaturenotes.yosemite.ca.us/NALightPollution.htm