
"A Brightly Lit Killing Field..."

August  16th saw the wrap-up in Washington, DC of a 4-day session of
talks dealing with the problems in  modern-day  astronomy  of  light
pollution,  radio  interference  and  space  debris.   Much  of  the
information was not  new.   And  yet,  the  eloquence with which the
problems were presented, chilled us.

On  the  problem  of  the  ever-increasing  numbers  of space debris
particles, any of which could wreak havoc  on  spacecraft  and  kill
our astronauts, catch light, and  are  even now streaking all of the
photographs  taken  at  Mt.  Palomar,  Sydney  van  den Bergh of the
Dominion Astrophysical  Observatory  said,  "I  feel  really  scared
about the space debris  problem.   Thirty  years ago, no one thought
the  oceans  could be polluted.  Now look at what we've done. A 1-mm
particle of space debris can puncture  a  spacesuit.   Space  debris
itself, and the light it  produces,  could  end our space program in
30 years.  We are creating a brightly lit killing field."

Of  radio  interference,  Tomas  Gergely  of  the  National  Science
Foundation  said,  "If  you  call  for a paramedic, you don't want a
pizza to arrive.  The electromagnetic fog of low-level  interference
is increasing rapidly and  causing  major  problems.  If not curbed,
it  will  prevent  us  from reaching the edge of the Universe.  Even
the idea of using the dark side  of  the  Moon  for  radio  work  is
questionable - the worst  polluters  are  better funded than we are,
and will probably get there first."

Dr.  David  Crawford,  astronomer at Kitt Peak National Observatory,
and  President  of  the  IAU's  Commission  on  the  Protection   of
Observatory Sites, says  of  light  pollution,  "We must learn about
better  lighting.  Neither the birds nor the astronauts need all the
light we are throwing up into space.  At least $1.3 billion  a  year
is spent in the USA on  electricity  that  is wasted to light up the
night  sky.   This  is  more than the entire budget for astronomy in
the USA.  Generations of children are growing up having  never  seen
the  Milky  Way  simply  because  they  can't.   We  are  creating a
permanent twilight."

Copies of the conference press releases are available upon request.




This  newsletter  may be reproduced with credit, please, to the U.S.
Naval Observatory.


BY:

Gail S. Cleere 202/653-1541
NAVOBSY WASH

This  news  release  may  be  reproduced, with credit please, to the
U.S. Naval Observatory.
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