Globe at Night is an international citizen-science campaign to raise public awareness of the impact of light pollution by inviting citizen-scientists to measure & submit their night sky brightness observations. It's easy to get involved - all you need is computer or smart phone & follow these 5 Simple Steps!
Once you have found Leo, you will be able to see why the ancients visualized this asterism as a lion and you will find it very easy to spot in the night sky. However, if you have never had anyone point out this constellation, looking for Leo can be very much like trying to spot a lion hiding in the grasslands of the African Savannah.
Much like any time you are looking for something new, it is usually easier to start with something you already know. In the case of the night sky, one of the most recognizable constellations is that of the Big Dipper. Look for it in the North. You can trace it’s curved handle to the four stars that make up the bowl of the dipper. The two stars that delineate the far side of the bowl are often called pointer stars. If you follow them to the North, they point right at the North Star (Polaris), which also happens to be the first star in the handle of the Little Dipper. Following the pointer stars to the South will point you right to Leo.
How you can make a difference by participating in Globe at Night and why...
Globe at Night webapp
Whether you use a smartphone, tablet or computer, you can submit your data in real time with our webapp - now available in 28 languages! Help us make 2020 a record year!
Globe at Night’s “Adopt-a-Street” program
Are you passionate about Dark Skies? Consider coordinating an Adopt-a-Street program in your area during the 2020 Globe at Night campaigns.
What is the Adopt-a-Street Program?
Globe at Night offers a “Call to Action” for those who want to take more measurements during the campaigns. Children and adults can “Adopt a Street” in their town to take visual and possibly sky-brightness meter measurements during the Globe at Night campaigns. The strategy is for people to adopt a different major or semi-major street and take measurements every mile or so for the length of the street (or for as long as they can). The grid of measurements will canvas the town, allowing for research later in comparison to wildlife, health, energy consumption and cost, among other things.
Globe at Night is proud to be one of SciStarter's Top Ten Projects of 2018! Register with SciStarter to take advantage of their tools to automatically track your contributions through a centralized SciStarter dashboard. Check out our project page to learn more.
New! A light pollution education kit: Turn on the Night!
Based on the Quality Lighting Teaching Kit developed by the National Optical Astronomy Observatory for the International Year of Light, 2015, Turn on the Night, a Light and the Environment STEM Kit is available now at Laser Classroom.
Four hands-on activities invite students in grades 7-12 to plan, design and create strategies for city lighting that balance the competing concerns of humans and the environment. Using the problem solving process, students learn about issues raised by human created lighting: Glare, Sky Glow, Light Trespass and Excess Energy Consumption. Come find out more at: https://mailchi.mp/laserclassroom.com/turnonthenight.
Related phone apps
Globe at Night is pleased that two native smartphone apps have become available that integrate well with our campaigns. The Loss of the Night app is a free app. available for Android & iOS. And if you have an iPhone that can run iOS 10 or later, take a look at the Dark Sky Meter app, just $1.99 in the App Store.
