How To Deal With LIGHT POLLUTION Town & City Astronomy.

There are only a lucky few that 'don't' have to deal with light pollution on a nightly basis, but there are things that (us) the unlucky majority can do to combat this menace... In this video I share with you all my tips'n'tricks that I use to deal with light pollution.
Thank you for watching don't forget to subscribe and press that notification bell as I do regular uploads for the new astronomer.. Clear skies all :)
Small Optics Facebook Group: groups/223807419299994/?ref=share

[@benrevell]

I can remember when street lights used to be switched off, round about midnight or 1am. You could stand in the garden, in town, and see the milky way as plain as owt. Can't remember what year they stopped doing it. Just think of the energy that could be saved too.

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Ben. The good old days... I just can't understand why they can't do something like that now the sky glow around the globe is getting to the point of ridiculous now... And then they have the cheek to blame us for global warming... #Lightfreeskies

[@bennybooboobear3940]

How about the people who drive at night, as little as there are?

[@ranSmsB]

@@bennybooboobear3940 Cars have lights, phones have lights and a torch can also be purchased. Led streetlights without shielding are doing more harm than good too. As a driver I always get blinded by them for a couple of seconds, it's really frustrating and if it's raining all those reflections are making it worse.

[@benrevell]

@@bennybooboobear3940 There's not many vehicles that are devoid of lights and they are very handy for driving in the dark. :) :)

[@bobmarleystoe]

that was during the war old yin.😂

[@Doomclown]

Please do a video on how to get rid of clouds.

[@smalloptics753]

Hahaha.... If only I could..

[@epic_playz4283]

Here in Nashville, TN we only get like 3 to 4 clear days a week

[@greggweber9967]

Mosquitoes?

[@rldaniel514]

Better than Scotland ​@@epic_playz4283

[@elijahmmahilum4995]

crazzy doom ahahabab

[@adonis6766]

Thx for making this! I live in the 4th floor and in front of our balcony there are 2 buildings and for some reason they have incredibly bright lights. It's so bright i have to close my lights in the balcony and room so they can fill it lol. Can't wait for next week to travel to Greece and find a darker place to picture the milky way and I'm probably gonna get the Telescope with me. Currently i live in a bortle 8-9 skies

[@smalloptics753]

Hey Ton, Your more than welcome.. Yes bright lights are such a nuisance, I've got a similar problem with my neighbours, they have a incredibly bright security light that is on ALL night shining right in my eye's so there is no total darkness were I observe, so I have to do nearly all these tips on the video. .. Hope you have a great time in Greece, definitely take your telescope with you.. I know I would. Take care, clear skies :)

[@xItzSpruce]

​@@smalloptics753i live in bortle 8 location. But how have i seen star with 5 magnitude? And light pollution suck. If u need light point it down and put a shade on it.

[@xItzSpruce]

​@@smalloptics753and theres bortle 4 location just 40 min drive from home

[@kendalsmucker4899]

Jason sheds light on a difficult topic.

[@edfort5704]

Get out. xD

[@AyahuascaSage]

Cheers from the eastern US where light pollution is essentially inescapable! Even moving from a small city with bortle 7 skies to suburban bortle 5 skies feels like a huge jump. So much more opens up to you. Also, I highly recommend talking to your neighbors (kindly!) about their lights. Every neighbor thay I've talked to so far has been receptive when I explain my hobby and that lights make it harder to see the night sky. I give people the benefit of the doubt and assume thay they just never even thought about it! Even found out one neighbor enjoys stargazing too!

[@kathymiskell7658]

Good points! Most of the battle is just not looking at the lights around you. I string up some tarps in various places in my yard to block certain street lights and I set up in a spot that's shaded from a lot of the worst lights. I can see a good bit of the sky from my "dark spot" fortunately. I wear a lightweight hooded wind jacket to pull around my face when looking thru the eyepiece. I'll have to try out the plastic plant pot idea because the jacket does get a little warm sometimes; however it is good for also keeping the mosquitoes off!

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Kathy. Thank you. Yeah, it's so hard not to turn and curse the light that's the culprit... And of course the light is the only winner then.. Yes thats what I do, I hang sheets, blankets, towels, anything to block the light, the difference It makes though... Hope you get on OK with the plant pot idea, it's a bit of a "odd" one, but it really works well. Take care, clear skies :)

[@alexrichardson9125]

All the videos of yours that I have seen are so simple and effective, and whats more they generally don't cost a bean! Thank you so much.

[@karl-70]

Hi, I have only recently started observing the night sky (about a month now) and I have only just now discovered your channel. Its nice and straight forward, easy to understand and down to earth (or should that be up to space 😁). Anyway, nice work, Ive subscribed and look forward to tuning in regularly. 👍

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Karl. Thank you for your kinds words and support. Great to hear you are enjoying the channel. Take care buddy, clear skies :)

[@chiraagshah269]

Just got back from a dark sky spot to see the perseids. Saw nothing due to clouds. However, I saw a really bright shooting star in my light polluted garden b4 setting off for 'better views' 😊😅

[@markmakabuhay2009]

Same i prepared for the perseids then clouds starts appearing and didnt had a chance to see it

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Chiraag. oh that's a shame, but a least you got to see something :) better luck next time my friend.

[@Talalpro_1]

Bortle 4 is my dream sky

[@chiraagshah269]

@@smalloptics753 no worries.... The following day, I was looking at the opposite side to the zenith; on my way back inside and I saw the biggest, slowest fireball I have ever seen! It had a green hue to the tail (no it wasn't a firework lol).

[@chiraagshah269]

@@Talalpro_1 Oh sorry, b4 meaning before. My back garden is at least bottle 5 ☺️

[@tribeoflight-ireland868]

I grew up in Southampton, and have been into astronomy since the late 70s. Back then at my grandads the sky was good for stars even though he lived on a street, i lived on the top floor of a flat surrounded by street lights, it was bad then and my 3 inch reflector did very little. I moved to Ireland 9 years ago away from neighbours, luckily in an area which is Bortle 3 but closer to Bortle 2. My first time aurora hunting i walked up the lane, j could not even make out the road on my way back. These are the positives, the negative is the weather, but i appreciate i am lucky to be able to see the Milky Way again, it just has not been clear much lately.

[@bennybooboobear3940]

Thanks so much for making this Jason! Great video as always!

[@smalloptics753]

Hey Benny, Thank you buddy, much appreciated. And, your more than welcome :)

[@dennisnicholson952]

Jason, I have just discovered Small Optics and I like your take on things. Insofar as light pollution goes, it seems to me that the average person couldn't care less about the beauties of the night. I can recall seeing the Milky Way from my front porch way back in the 1960s; and this was in a small northeastern Maryland town where the light pollution has become much worse. The town, that I live in now is not so great either. There are, of course, ways to alleviate the problem, both at the municipal level and the personal level the latter of which, you have outlined. One solution for communities would be to fit their outdoor lights with fixtures that direct their light toward the ground. Most light pollution, such as it is, is caused by stray light which is only lighting up clouds and airplanes. This unneeded light lowers contrast by introducing skyglow. Even light-pollution filters may not always help. These block certain light sources, that have specific wavelengths, such as sodium-vapor and mercury-vapor lights. They don't work with lights that emit light in a continuous spectrum.

[@BobMonkeypimp]

I'm quite lucky that I can drive out to the Pennines (30 minute drive). The only problem for me is that as a wheelchair user, once I've loaded up the telescope, the wheelchair & a couple of burly mates (Pennines are scary alone at night), my tiny little Merc is fully loaded. So, when it sadly comes time to sell the Grey Lady I'll be buying a 7 seater van. Haven't really got the space for two vehicles at my house but I'm getting older now so practicality comes first. Shame they don't actually make any stylish vans for disabled posers like me :)

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Bob. It's the only way my friend, to get as for from it as you can.. Hahaha! I know what you mean, those dark lonely locations can get a bit "what the... was that noise!" At times lol.. Having couple of friends always helps :D.. Take care my friend Hope you get that dream van one day :)

[@lieutenantdaan8261]

I spent a few months in Texas where my grandad lives is right out in the sticks, I remember looking up and seeing thousands of stars just everywhere, definitely not the same as looking up from Derby City centre 😢

[@Astrolavista]

Nice one Jason, great tips for beginners. I still prefer the hoody to the plant pot ;)

[@smalloptics753]

Hey Chris, thanks pal.. Hahaha hoodies are warmer :D

[@Astrolavista]

@@smalloptics753 haha I take it you'll be swapping the plant pot for a hoodie come winter then:D

[@garryfreemyer7187]

Thanks for mentioning light pollution filters! 😊 Maybe I can use a black tent with a hole or flaps I can stick the telescope out of at night. 😊

[@KatWoodland]

Here in the USA the utility company has purposefully installed obtrusive lighting. We went from 25 kHz to 200 kHz and now it’s hell. Demons run the USA.

[@AmatureAstronomer]

Only been in the hobby since August, 2023. After a bit of experimenting, I have found that the SvBony CLS filter helps a lot. It blocks light pollution, makes nebula stand out and blocks chromatic aberration. It only cost $52 for the 2" and $29 for the 1.25". Oh, and I use my laptop for an eyepiece. That way, using Sharp Cap and my ZWO asi294 camera, I can photograph a lot of things I can't see with my cataracts. I do have to use plate solving for many of my targets.

[@scottb5178]

Thx for video. I just made a light shield out of a piece of corrugated cardboard. The corrugating allowed me to easily bend it around the scope. Taped it up, and painted it inside and out with flat black spray paint. Nice snug fit is easy to slip on and off. Thanks for the idea.

[@dnjj1845]

There was a local park here long ago that was free of surrounding light, trees/buildings that had a good viewing sky, horizon to horizon. There were no closing hours posted. So I decided one clear evening to take the scope out there for an hour or two to check the skies out. Shortly after I was out on the field, somebody was approaching me with a flashlight. It was a police officer. He told me the park was closed. He didn't ask me what I was doing, it was obvious with my scope. He was cool about it. I showed him a view of Saturn. He liked it and said I'll give you a half hour.

[@toml.8210]

Those are all very good points. I do them all! I take notice days or weeks before, to see where the best or darkest area of the property is located. I make note of which lamps need to be turned off, then do so an hour or two before I go out to view. Fortunately I don't have any street lights, but there is a shopping area a mile or so away, and you get a bit of a glow in the sky. Unfortunately, I live on an active street, and people with expensive SUVs with the "brightest headlamps allowed by law" drive by every few minutes! So even with the driveway and porch lights off, someone decides "Don can't see what he's doing" so they turn the light back on! I provide a few choice words to them. 😆 I'll even throw a dark towel over a few yard lamps, and get a little viewing in for the night.

[@smalloptics753]

Hey Don, Thank you buddy, yeah, me too. My neighbours security light is on All night and it's like a stadium floodlight I get no total darkness. Many a time I fantasized about an unfortunate accident that might just happen to it? XD.. Take care buddy, keep on protesting them lights :)

[@toml.8210]

@@smalloptics753 Kamikaze birds maybe? Micro- meteorites with laser aim? 😆

[@smalloptics753]

@@toml.8210 Hahaha!

[@ravtunesmusic]

Just starting off, thankyou for sharing these tips. Much appreciated.

[@epic_playz4283]

Haven't watched you in a while man great vid!

[@Hawkwind65]

Thx, good pointers, 'preciated.

[@michaeldesignbig2538]

Personally i got a B-B gun and shot all the street lights around my property, from Bortle 5 to Bortle 3 in a instance :) the government fixed them twice but now they gave up, its been 2 years since

[@jrrarglblarg9241]

I considered this but popping the next door neighbor’s back porch light is too obviously incriminating. Only one neighbor he could suspect. I might sneak over and replace the bulb.

[@jack002tuber]

I wonder if putting up a tall tool shed in the back yard with a roof that comes off would work? Thanks for this vid, I fight light pollution a lot. Got these street lights in the front yard and too many trees in the back. I've thought about getting up on the roof.

[@wakingforbacon6439]

My bottle is 4 but I have a bunch of street lights around because I live beside 2 factories. But still struggling to find even Orion. I'm really new to this though. I got the moon and Jupiter last night. Was amazing. My first real outing with my scope. Have an xt6 classic. 6 inch scope Newtonian reflector. Jupiter was so pretty and amazing. All four moons poking out. Amazing. Love this hobby you have here. Can't wait for more.

[@smalloptics753]

Welcome to the hobby Mark, sounds like you've got the bug already.. Great to hear :)

[@wakingforbacon6439]

@@smalloptics753 thanks. I can thank flat earther for it mainly. If not.for them I would have never really started looking into astronomy. Lol. So I guess they are playing a good role in a weird way.

[@Muesli711]

I use a couple of parasols to block out a street light that is directly at my back yard. Like you say, this type of localised light blocking doesn't change the sky glow but they allow my eyes to become dark adapted.

[@marcomknc]

Thanks for making this videos, they are really helpful for me, awesome tips!

[@smalloptics753]

Your more than welcome Marco.

[@omarbermudez8110]

Great videos! I'm a begginer and appreciate these so much, thanks!

[@smalloptics753]

Thank you, your more than welcome 😊

[@arrond316]

Wonderful video, thanks for the good advice.

[@revo1974]

Outdoor lighting on the Big Island of Hawaii is not allowed to have more than 2% Blue Light Content.

[@GaryCameron]

LOL I have to stare into an enormous 2000W light at the south end of my driywhile finding 3 stars to align the GOTO. There is no shade on my driveway. Ugh! Also I have an optional cell phone adapter to drive my scope. Hard not to look at the phone when it is the controller for your scope. The tube extension works great for dew. (dewcap) The dark sky filters don't work as well on LED streetlights because they use a wider spectrum.

[@pww6581]

Hi Jason, Great video and advice, as always. Do you need to blacken out the inside of a dew shield that you've made for the telescope?

[@smalloptics753]

Hello there.. Yes ideally you do because you want as much anti glare as possible just ordinary cheap black poster paint will do fine, but any paint will do as long as it's has a mat finish . Even better than having to paint it you could make the entire thing out of black card which any craft store will sell :)

[@pww6581]

@@smalloptics753 👍 thanks

[@andrewpattie358]

Hello Jason I live in the countryside so iv got really dark skies at home but I do take my telescopes to work on an industrial estate and found a really good filter is a CPL filter wich I got in a few filters off ebay 2nd had, for the moon filter there was some random ones with it, away its very good cutting out glare from the lights and there cheap too, it doesn't really change the colour of everything, the one I have is svbony and the hole set is only about £25 new so think it's definitely worth trying

[@mikeh.8912]

The narrowband filters (ultrablock, OIII, etc.) work quite well for most nebulae despite the light pollution. They're almost useless for other DSOs, though. Globular clusters, if you can find them, still look okay, despite the sky glow, especially at higher power. Galaxies, however, are next to impossible to see in my area, except for Andromeda. Have to have dark skies for those. If only we can get local governments to mandate sane outdoor/street lighting fixtures...yeah, when pigs fly! It's amazing how much energy is wasted in poorly designed or badly angled outdoor lighting that goes straight into the sky. :(

[@georgk255]

Interesting. What white balance set?

[@bobmarleystoe]

i took my astromaster 130 to a bortle scale of 3 area and it was amazing.

[@TheLostLibrary]

Great video - I notice you are using quite the finder scope. However, I don't think my little red dot finder with the scope is the best for my light pollution situation and star hopping. I am at a little over 4 NELM. Would you recommend a magnified finder over the Rigel or Telrad? Thanks!

[@smalloptics753]

Hello there, It really depends on which you prefer, some like optical finders and some like the RDF's ... I wouldn't say one is better than the other, me personally I prefer the RDF's.... Telrad's and such are great and do the job but so does a simple cheap RDF .. Again, it's more of a personal preference than which one is better.. :)

[@TheLostLibrary]

@@smalloptics753 Thank you. I ordered the Rigel as the RDF with the scope is too small and low for me to see through comfortably. And yet, how the Galileos and Messiers of our world managed 🤔

[@SuperWillie0]

Very good pointers!

[@smalloptics753]

Thank you Willie :)

[@joudvloggs9364]

6&7 may 2024, The whole Solar System is aligned in a line in the sky 🌌 and has a high chance to continue for several days!

[@dipteshghosh2274]

Hello sir I am always confused about in which angle should be the focuser. Plz give a video on the topic

[@frackcenturion]

and most important to use red light if you need to see in the dark 🔭👍

[@smalloptics753]

Hey Frack. Good point.... I always manage to forget to mention something lol.

[@frackcenturion]

@@smalloptics753 to many things to cover in one video 👍

[@ulisesguzman8574]

Had some EVA foam left over from a prop making course so i made a big light blocking square, stuck it on the end of a 5 meter long PVC tube with some string, made a big cairn out of bricks, put the stick on the cairn with the shade thingy against the street light right above my yard and it work great, sadly, today the dogs found it, dropped the stick and tore my shady thing to pieces, hopefully i can think of an easier solution this time around XD

[@ulisesguzman8574]

Hey, maybe that could be a good use for the huge box the telescope came in

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Ulises. What a great idea.. Shame the dogs got hold of it.

[@smalloptics753]

@@ulisesguzman8574 It wouldn't hurt to try :)

[@hondaxl250k0]

The key to the street light issue is a laser pointer. Shine it at the top of the light and it goes off for a while. 👍🏻👍🏻

[@smalloptics753]

Really! I've just got to try that :D

[@hondaxl250k0]

@@smalloptics753 mine is a green one. I can kill most of the lights down my street. They stay off for about 10 min.

[@hondaxl250k0]

@@smalloptics753 gotta aim for the light sensor.

[@TheUrbanAstronomer]

Awesome tips Jason!

[@smalloptics753]

Thank you my friend :)

[@Johnnybox81]

I spent a couple of evening on the Norfolk coast and the light pollution was so low I was spotting messier objects with ease! I cannot see M33 for example from my house in Northants!

[@DianaIreneSaldana]

Very useful video! Thanks!

[@evamartonfalvi5817]

Thanks a lot. They are really useful ideas.

[@smalloptics753]

Your more welcome :)

[@garryfreemyer7187]

In the small town Where I live there is an incredible number of cars and trucks traveling up and down the roads after dark with high beams on for no apparent reason its nuts!!!!!!! There is no getting my eyes set for darkness with nosey drivers asking me why I’m wearing a black hood every few minutes. I can’t drive so that is that. I’m screwed i guess. 😢

[@BasmanIqbal]

Just wanted to ask a question, are red , blue and moon filters the same as light filters? And is it necessary to buy if u live in a light polluted area?

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Basman, not really no, you can get moon filters that are also sky glow filters there the type you want. It's not necessary to have a light pollution filter but they will help to a certain extent. The only time I would say they are necessary is when doing astrophotography.. Hope this helps :)

[@BasmanIqbal]

Thanks a lot sir. Now my doubt is clear!😁

[@smalloptics753]

@@BasmanIqbal Your welcome my friend :)

[@oddessy357]

Thanks for this Jason

[@smalloptics753]

Your welcome my friend :)

[@hmuphilly9129]

Theres a new led streetlight right out my garage and it friggin bloody lights up the whole street!! how am I suppose to avoid it? laser pointer? hmm

[@kmichaelp4508]

Good one 👍

[@smalloptics753]

Thanks pal appreciate it :)

[@ach5477]

Hello darkness, my old friend

[@BasmanIqbal]

Thanks a lot for the video, I live in Riyadh (it's a very urbanized city in saudi Arabia) and it has a loooooot of light pollution ,like the night sky looks purple and dark blue instead of black😅and I always try to reduce the light pollution s as much as possible to get the best views from my telescope by tricks such as your magic wand trick😆😆🤣🤣and others.i will try my best to apply the knowledge I received from this video to my astronomy😄

[@smalloptics753]

Hello my friend, your more than welcome. It's such a nuisance isn't it? I wish our government's would at least just install downward pointing lights instead of illuminating the skies, with lights that scatter everywhere. Which let's face it, not only is it a menace to us astronomers, it's wasting light and energy which equals to global warming contributions.. which they like to blame us for... I often wonder what our night skies must have looked in Newton's time.. Take care, clear light free skies :)

[@BasmanIqbal]

Yes I totally agree with u.we could start a “turn your lights off”campaign in order for clear skies…😅😅😅😂. I went outside to see Jupiter and Saturn once and the street light were off! I got so happy and exited because I could have more fun in astronomy that day.I hope one day that I can experience that happiness and joy everyday in astronomy…

[@soozikins]

Are modern low energy led street lights less invasive than the old red sodium ones? 🤔

[@rael5926]

LED azul é mais agressivo. O melhor seria um LED com luz amarelada, igual as antigas lâmpadas.

[@RobBob555]

Losing weight there Jason 👍

[@smalloptics753]

LOL! Thanks rob, not really noticed :)

[@hmuphilly9129]

What in the heck was that at 1:01 when you cupped your hands i saw like ghost orbs XD without averted vision

[@ericrasmussen8188]

Thanks!

[@smalloptics753]

Very much appreciated thank you

[@BigBadLoneWolf]

Living in a 4th floor flat, with nom balcony, in a 7 Bortle sky, I can Be in Bortle 3 skies within 1 a hour drive to a national park car park, with toilet facilities

[@kathrynwallace3917]

Does the light shield tube need to be black inside?

[@cwalke32477]

Yes, a flat/matte black, to prevent glare

[@leomenchaca6860]

Flower 🌼 pot: works amazing so far. Even with phone attachments.

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Leo. It works a treat doesn't it? Glad to hear you like it. Take care, clear light free skies :)

[@bushcraftandastronomer.3775]

Hi Jason pigs can fly hahaha I know who can fly too Boris Johnson so a pic of him flying would be right hahaha. I've noticed when camping in highlands of Scotland the dark skies there are much better alot darker and Glencoe is bortle 2 skies as it shows that when you travel at night on A82 and camp site is just perfect. I'm doing astrophotography in the highlands as I know where to go now. Even in Edinburgh you can see only the bright objects and Calton hill observatory is ok as I've looked through telescope at Saturn still was so good. More astronomers now seek dark skies than ever and I remember in early 1980s the skies were darker and better. Galloway is bortle 1 and I have seen the milky way and it's special in bortle 1 skies. Imagine if Hubble space telescope was on ground based then Hubble wouldn't do anything like it could in space. Light pollution is just getting worse all the time and nothing is really being done to combat it. We are slowly losing the dark skies and I think we should act now or it'll be too late. You think this problem will ever be sorted or it'll end up we lose the night sky? Very interesting Video my friend and stay safe plus clear skies!!!

[@smalloptics753]

Hey Bushcraft. Hahaha there are a few MP's that spring to mind when I think of flying pigs :D... I've only ever been to Scotland Once and it was really far up North East of Scotland I can't remember exactly where Inverness springs to mind, it was mid Summer and the problem was it never went dark properly not because of light pollution but it just never gets dark up there at that time of year apparently.. We went on a fishing/camping trip and it was so weird fishing after midnight and it was still twilight... It would be nice if the powers that be did do something about the light pollution, if it gets any worse the night sky is going to become almost impossible to observe ... Anywhere! Cheers buddy, take care, clear light free skies :)

[@StewartL]

I live in Edinburgh and have Optolong light pollution filters and were great for blocking out the orange sodium street lights. Now the council have changed them all to new white led lights and filters no longer work. Recently went down to the borders with my telescope at Talla Linnfoots reservoirs and was able to see the milky-way, really dark skies.

[@rossbriannestein5054]

Where in the U.K are you?

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Ross, Chesterfield North East Derbyshire :)

[@rossbriannestein5054]

@@smalloptics753 I would assume that you don't have much light pollution, in comparison to larger city's.

[@smalloptics753]

@@rossbriannestein5054 No, nowhere near as much as big city's ,mine is more localised light pollution like near by street/security lights.

[@xItzSpruce]

​@@smalloptics753my light pollution isnt as bad as in big cities too. I live in bortle 8. And Finland has only 1 big city but its not that big. Its nothing compared to like london

[@CDigata]

mr OK😜

[@smalloptics753]

OK so it's a bad habit I use to have OK but I don't do it now OK I try hard not to say OK now OK😜

[@3dfxvoodoocards6]

Like

[@joergbaumann7429]

Light pollution? Pain in the ass 🧐

[@xItzSpruce]

Yea it sucks. I live in bortle 8. I hope they turn street lights off for night or at least shield them

[@willarddevoe5893]

No facebook

[@XtianApi]

Hey honey we should maybe move. Really? Where? Oh I don't know, Kazakhstan.