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The loss of dark skies is so painful, astronomers coined a new term for it (www.space.com)

submitted 1 year ago by FlyingSquid@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world

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Given the harmful effects of light pollution, a pair of astronomers has coined a new term to help focus efforts to combat it. Their term, as reported in a brief paper in the preprint database arXiv and a letter to the journal Science, is "noctalgia." In general, it means "sky grief," and it captures the collective pain we are experiencing as we continue to lose access to the night sky.

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[–] FluffyPotato@lemm.ee 7 points 1 year ago (2 children)

In my parents farm the night sky is perfectly visible. They live far from any town and there are no lights you can't just turn off so sometimes I just look at the sky when I'm visiting.

Plenty of places like this still in my country thankfully.

[–] negativeyoda@lemmy.world 8 points 1 year ago (3 children)

I've always lived in cities and didn't see the milky way until I was in my 30s.

Anyhow, I took my kid camping last weekend and she couldn't believe how many stars there were. We were both enjoying it but then the string of SpaceX satellites went by and kind of ruined the moment

[–] havokdj@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I laughed at that last part. I am sorry that happened to you but it is pretty funny.

[–] khalic@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago

Can’t even watch the stars without that dumbass spamming your view field

[–] PersnickityPenguin@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

We were just up in the mountains last weekend, it was by far the best stargazing I have ever experienced in my 40 years. I could see the Andromeda galaxy with the naked eye.

Anyway, I counted over 15 satellites during the 2 hours we were outside, as well as 2 very bright meteors. Plus we saw the international space station and an iridium flare.

[–] const_void@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 year ago

Elon ruins everything he touches

[–] khalic@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago

Unfortunately, even secluded towns suffer because of light diffusion in the atmosphere. The only places left where you can see it, the way it was before electric lights, are mountains and extremely far places (think middle of the ocean or the poles)