Astronomy and sodium lighting

W. H. Krase, Kathleen A. Wolf

Published 1984

In the last decade, lighting in the City of San Diego and its suburbs has increased substantially. Astronomers at Palomar Observatory are concerned that the encroaching light will make many of their measurements impossible. San Diego will soon convert its street lighting to one of the more efficient sodium systems. The function of this Note is to identify and analyze some of the important factors in this public policy question. The first purpose is to assess the significance of light pollution to astronomers. The second purpose is to focus on methods of mitigating the effects of light pollution. The third purpose is to compare the costs and efficiency of low- and high-pressure sodium lighting. The findings reveal that light pollution presents a problem for many types of astronomical measurements. Although a number of methods of reducing the impacts of lighting might be adopted, the most promising is conversion to low-pressure sodium lights. Costs of the low- and high-pressure systems in San Diego are comparable, and the final decision on the type of lighting should be based on other factors.

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Document Details

  • Copyright: RAND Corporation
  • Availability: Web Only
  • Year: 1984
  • Pages: 68
  • Document Number: N-2089-RC

Citation

Chicago Manual of Style

Krase, W. H. and Kathleen A. Wolf, Astronomy and sodium lighting. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1984. https://www.rand.org/pubs/notes/N2089.html.
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