Australia has the lowest proportion of land area affected by light pollution among G20 countries.
But it’s a different story when you look at light pollution per person: Australia has one of the highest rates among G20 countries, surpassing the US, Russia, Japan, the UK, and France.
“Despite the majority land mass of Australia being able to see the Milky Way, the overwhelming majority of people have light pollution,” Dr Tucker said.
This means a large proportion of Australians probably can’t see the Milky Way from their home.
In short:
- Most people in the world live under light-polluted skies with many unable to see the Milky Way at night.
- Use interactives in this story to see how where you live affects your view of the night sky, and how adapting our lighting can reduce light pollution and improve your night sky view.
- What’s next? The ABC is exploring the night sky and light pollution for National Science Week (August 10 –18) so watch out for more stories.
