Find research datasets worth reusing

Search datasets from major research repositories and use ShareScore to quickly assess how well each record supports discovery, access, and reuse.

datasets available to search

ShareScore release 0.7.1

Dataset results

36 results for “Light pollution”

Learn how ShareScore rates datasets ↗

zenodo44/100

Data for Korner et al. "Birds and the Post Tower in Bonn: A case study of light pollution"

Abstract During six consecutive autumn seasons we registered birds that were attracted to an illuminated 41-storey building in Bonn, Germany. Casualties on the ground were disoriented by the light and in most cases collided with the building. All-night observations with numbers of casualties, effective light sources, moon, and weather parameters registered hourly allowed for analyses of the role of these factors for the attraction and disorientation of numerous migratory birds. As expected, the conspicuous façade illumination was responsible for many casualties (fatal or non-fatal). Additionally, the illuminated roof logos and even faint light sources like the emergency lights were attractive and led to casualties. Moon and rain were negatively correlated with casualties, but there was no clear correlation with other weather parameters. Turning off lights was key, but effects of other ex post mitigation measures were limited: shutters were not originally intended for the attenuation of light emissions, control technology was insufficient, and there was a lack of willingness of the building owner to reduce light emissions consistently, even during core bird migration periods. Conservation recommendations are derived from this case study.   Vögel und der &bdquo;Postturm“ in Bonn: Eine Fallstudie zur Lichtverschmutzung In sechs aufeinanderfolgenden Herbstsaisons erfassten wir die Vögel, die an ein beleuchtetes, 41stöckiges Hochhaus in Bonn (Deutschland), den sog. &bdquo;Postturm “ angelockt wurden. Die Opfer am Boden waren aufgrund der Beleuchtung desorientiert und in den meisten Fällen mit dem Gebäude kollidiert. Basierend auf Beobachtungen während des gesamten Nachtverlaufes wurden die registrierten Opfer, die in Betrieb befindlichen Lichtquellen, Mond und Wettervariablen stundenweise dargestellt, um die Bedeutung dieser Faktoren für die Anlockung und Desorientierung zahlreicher Zugvögel zu analysieren. Die auffällige Fassadenbeleuchtung war erwartungsgemäß für die meisten der Todesfälle und Verletzungen verantwortlich. Zusätzlich führten die beleuchteten Firmenlogos auf dem Dach und sogar schwache Lichtquellen wie die Notbeleuchtung zu Opfern durch Anlockung, auch bei ausgeschalteter Fassadenbeleuchtung. Mond und Regen korrelierten negativ mit den Opferzahlen, aber mit anderen Wettervariablen fehlten klare Korrelationen. Das Abschalten der Beleuchtung war ausschlaggebend, während andere nachträgliche Abhilfemaßnahmen wenig wirksam waren: Sonnenschutzlamellen waren ursprünglich beim Einbau nicht dafür konzipiert, Lichtabstrahlung zu reduzieren, die Steuerungstechnik war fehleranfällig und die Bereitschaft der Gebäudeeigentümerin, Lichtemissionen selbst während der Kernzeiten des Vogelzugs konsequent zu reduzieren, war begrenzt. Aus dieser Fallstudie werden Empfehlungen für Schutzmaßnahmen abgeleitet.

opencc-by-4.0Apr 2022View details →

zenodo44/100

First estimation of global trends in nocturnal power emissions reveals acceleration of light pollution

The power emitted by different countries at night is based on DMSP and VIIRS data. Inclued also, some extra data from Spain, Portugal, Italy, UK and Greece.

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2021View details →

zenodo40/100

Star Trail in the Southern Hemisphere with Bortle 4 Scale Light Pollution

Winner in the 2023 IAU OAE Astrophotography Contest, category Still images with smartphones-mobile devices: Star Trail in the Southern Hemisphere with Bortle 4 Scale Light Pollution, by Slamat Riyadi. This breathtaking photo, captured under the clear night sky of Linggamekar Village, Cilimus, Kuningan, West Java, Indonesia on 25 June 2020, displays star trails sweeping across the southern hemisphere’s heavens. The star trails are due to Earth’s rotation causing the apparent motion of stars, creating these mesmerising arcs of light when followed over extended periods. Here, the point the stars rotate around (the South Celestial Pole) is close to the horizon, as the image was taken close to the equator. The photographer used the star trail feature on a smartphone, which captured a series of images over an extended period and stacked them together. The striking tree in the foreground adds depth to the image, contrasting the celestial motion above with its Earthly stillness, while also masking some of the surrounding light pollution. Different parts of the world offer diverse and stunning perspectives on the night sky, emphasising the importance of preserving dark skies everywhere. Credit: Slamat Riyadi/IAU OAE (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode">CC BY 4.0</a>)

opencc-by-4.0Dec 2023View details →

zenodo40/100

Fig. 3 in Glass Buildings As Bird Feeders: Urban Birds Exploit Insects Trapped By Polarized Light Pollution

Fig. 3. Timing of foraging visits of European magpie (Pica pica) to the northern building of the Eötvös University as detected by a web camera from 17:00 h on 16 May to 20:00 h on 23 May in 2007. Arrow lengths represent the proportion of all visits made during a particular hour over the

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2010View details →

zenodo40/100

Fig. 2 in Glass Buildings As Bird Feeders: Urban Birds Exploit Insects Trapped By Polarized Light Pollution

Fig. 2. (A) Hovering white wagtail (Motacilla alba) catching caddis flies from a window. (B) House sparrow (Passer domesticus) capturing caddis flies from a vertical glass surface. (C) Great tit (Parus major) standing on a window's edge and catching caddis flies. (D) European magpie (Pica pica) on

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2010View details →

zenodo40/100

Fig. 1 in Glass Buildings As Bird Feeders: Urban Birds Exploit Insects Trapped By Polarized Light Pollution

Fig. 1. (A) The southern (left arrow) and northern (right arrow) building of the Faculty of Natural Sciences of the Eötvös University in Budapest seen from the river Danube. (B) Mass-swarming caddis flies (Hydropsyche pellucidula, white dots) at the vertical glass surfaces of the northern building. (C) "Well-laid table" for urban birds: caddis fly imagoes (black dots) landed on white (untinted) and black (tinted) vertical glass surfaces. (D) An adult caddis fly landed on the outside surface of a window photographed from outside. (E) A copulating caddis fly pair on the outside surface of a window

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2010View details →

zenodo40/100

Real Light Pollution Panorama, by Tomáš Slovinský, Slovakia

Second place in the 2021 IAU OAE Astrophotography Contest, category Light pollution. This composite image taken in Slovakia in 2020 illustrates the effect due to artificial illumination of light polluted areas. The higher the level of light pollution, the less we can observe in the sky, notice how the number of stars visible even to a sensitive digital camera decreases from right to left. Light pollution not only affects the visibility of objects in the night sky, but also significantly impacts ecosystems, negatively affecting many animals, such as migratory night birds, which may encounter difficulties to find the direction to where they should migrate to, or the sea turtles, which may be confused by the lights from coastal cities located near the beaches where they are supposed to spawn. Light pollution can also negatively impact some human health. Therefore, it is important to preserve the dark and quiet night sky for the benefit of the entire planet and all the diverse life it supports. Credit: Tomá&scaron; Slovinský/IAU OAE

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2021View details →

zenodo36/100

Light pollution from Daedalus 17

Light pollution detected from the balloon-borne prove to study the Geminids. The images were taken with a camera Sony A7S + lens Sigma 30 mm f/1.4.

opencc-by-4.0May 2016View details →

zenodo36/100

Data from: Even low light pollution levels affect the spatial distribution and timing of activity of a "light tolerant" bat species

Abstract of the related publication : By disrupting nocturnal landscapes worldwide, light pollution caused by Artificial Light At Night (ALAN) is recognised as a major threat to biodiversity. As even low light intensities might affect some taxa, concerns are arising about biological responses to widespread low light levels. We used data from a French citizen science bat monitoring program (1,894 full-nights monitored on 1,055 sites) to explore the landscape-scale effects of light on an open-space-foraging bat species, the Serotine bat (Eptesicus serotinus). We assessed this species' abundance and timing of night-time activity (median time of activity) at foraging sites. ALAN, and to a lesser extent moonlight, reduced E. serotinus abundance. ALAN delayed activity, and this delay was amplified during overcast nights. On the contrary, where there was no ALAN, the higher the cloud cover, the earlier the activity occurred. Cloud cover likely darkened the night sky in rural locations, whereas it amplified skyglow in light-polluted places, increasing ALAN effects on bats. Interestingly, moonlight also delayed activity but this effect was weakened where there was ALAN. Our study shows that even fine variations of light levels could affect the spatiotemporal distribution of a common species usually considered to be “light tolerant”, with potential cascading effects on individual fitness and population dynamics. It stresses how urgent it is to preserve and restore dark areas to protect biodiversity from light pollution while working on light intensity and directivity where ALAN is needed.

opencc-by-4.0Apr 2022View details →

dryad36/100

Data from: Dim light pollution prevents diapause induction in urban and rural moths

1. Light pollution is increasingly affecting biodiversity and may also disrupt seasonal adaptations. Even dim artificial light, such as skyglow—which can spread far beyond urban areas—can interfere with using photoperiod as a seasonal cue. 2. Here, we test how light pollution impacts diapause induction and whether urban evolution counteracts it, by using common-garden experiments with a common, widespread geometrid moth (Chiasmia clathrata). We raised offspring from urban and rural populations from North- and Mid-European countries in treatments with and without dim light at night. 3. The dim light treatment strongly increased direct development overall—with no evidence for urban adaptation to it—but distinctly more so in Mid- than in North-European populations. 4. Because diapause induction is critical for surviving winter, these results indicate that dim but widespread light pollution may have detrimental effects on insect populations, especially so at mid-latitudes, and may hence explain part of the ongoing, large-scale insect declines globally. 5. Synthesis and applications: Latitudinal variation in sensitivity to light pollution means that its contribution to insect declines—and its conservation importance—should likewise vary among regions. In mid-latitude regions, where populations seem more sensitive to light pollution, mitigating light pollution should be a high priority for insect conservation Reducing skyglow from cities should benefit both urban populations—which were just as susceptible as rural populations in our study—and rural populations—because skyglow extends far beyond the geographic boundaries of cities.

opencc-zeroFeb 2023View details →

dryad36/100

What happens when the lights are left on? Transcriptomic and phenotypic habituation to light pollution

Artificial light at night (ALAN) is one of the most ubiquitous human-induced environmental stressors. ALAN can induce immediate behavioral and physiological changes in animals, sometimes leading to severe health consequences. Nevertheless, many organisms persist in light-polluted environments and may have mechanisms of habituating to ALAN, reducing responses to repeated exposure over time. The capacity for animals to habituate to ALAN has yet to be tested experimentally. We conducted a 6-month repeated-measures experiment with zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) to test whether birds can habituate to repeated ALAN exposure. We measured individual changes in behavior, physiology (oxidative stress and telomere attrition), and gene expression to test for concordance among behavioral, physiological, and transcriptomic responses to ALAN. We present evidence of tolerance to chronic ALAN exposure, persistent behavioral responses lasting 8 weeks post-exposure, and habituation to subsequent re-exposure. We found no changes in telomere attrition and a decrease in oxidative stress associated with ALAN exposure, indicating potential protective effects of long-term dim ALAN. Changes in blood transcriptome within individuals revealed unique responses to both previous ALAN exposure and subsequent re-exposure. These results represent organismal resilience to chronic stressors and shed light on the capacity of individuals to persist in an increasingly light-polluted world.

opencc-zeroJun 2023View details →

dryad36/100