Thousands of Schoolchildren Around the World to Help Map Light Pollution in March (Forwarded)

Media Relations
National Center for Atmospheric Research
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Boulder, Colorado

Contacts For Journalists:

David Hosansky, head of Media Relations
303-497-8611

Kirsten Meymaris, UCAR Education and Outreach
303-497-2583

March 1, 2007

Thousands of Schoolchildren Around the World to Help Map Light Pollution in
March

BOULDER -- Schoolchildren around the world will gaze skyward after dark from
March 8 to 21, looking for specific constellations and then sharing their
observations through the Internet. The initiative, called GLOBE at Night,
will help scientists map light pollution around the world while educating
participants about the stars.

Now in its second year, GLOBE at Night is a special project of The GLOBE
Program (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment), a
worldwide science and education program managed by the University
Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) and Colorado State University
(CSU). Last year, more than 18,000 people from 96 countries on every
continent except Antarctica reported a total of more than 4,500
observations. This year's event promises to be even bigger.

"This is an exciting event for schoolchildren, families, and citizen
scientists across the country and around the world," says Kirsten Meymaris
of UCAR's Office of Education and Outreach, who is the GLOBE at Night
project coordinator. "It brings families together to enjoy the night sky and
to become involved in science. And it also raises awareness about the impact
of artificial lighting on our ability to see the stars."

GLOBE at Night will last two weeks to improve the odds of observers
experiencing at least one cloud-free night. Children in overcast areas who
cannot see stars will be able to input data about cloud conditions instead.

Threat to stargazing

Bright outdoor lighting at night is a growing problem for astronomical
observing programs around the world. By having students in many places hunt
for the same constellation, such as Orion, GLOBE at Night will allow
students to compare their observations with what others see, giving them a
sense of how light pollution varies from place to place. The young observers
will also learn more about the economic and geographic factors that control
light pollution in their communities and around the world.

GLOBE at Night was inspired in part by a similar project carried out in
Arizona and Chile by the National Optical Astronomy Observatory and the
Centro de Apoyo a la Didactica de la Astronomia, which are cosponsoring
GLOBE at Night. Other cosponsors are the GIS software and technology firm
ESRI and the UCAR-based Windows to the Universe program.

More details on GLOBE at Night are available on the project Web site.

The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research manages the National
Center for Atmospheric Research under primary sponsorship by the National
Science Foundation (NSF). Opinions, findings, conclusions, or
recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and
do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

GLOBE is an interagency program funded by NASA and NSF, and supported by the
U.S. Department of State. It is implemented through a cooperative agreement
among NASA, UCAR, and CSU. Internationally, GLOBE is a partnership between
the United States and more than 100 countries.

Related sites on the World Wide Web:

* GLOBE at Night
http://www.globe.gov/globeatnight
* Windows to the Universe
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/