Restoring Darkness

Episode 115: Get It Under Control with Peter Augusta

24 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Peter comes to us from Casambi, so naturally this one is all about controls. Now don’t glaze over all you astronomers and astrotourists, this is imp...

Episode 114: Darkness News Update with Scott Wachter Jan 16, 2024

16 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from this episode: - Certifying Campgrounds - A First for Wales - Darkness Events - A Bother in BiseiSponsored by Evlumahttps://evluma....

Episode 113: Time Famine with Jo Marchant

10 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

More and more satellites are going to obstruct the view for astronomers, but as Jo Marchant points out, it will also affect the cultural, spiritual an...

Episode 112: Darkness News Update with Scott Wachter Jan 3, 2024

03 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from this episode: - Debunk the Blue? - Protein Possibilities - DLC LUNA 1.0a -Rudolph’s RhythmsSponsored by Evlumahttps://evluma.com...

Episode 111: The Pittsburgh Street Light Conversion with Diane Turnshek

20 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Diane has been to Mars. That is, she crewed the Mars Desert Research Station in Utah. It was there she turned her attention to Dark Sky advocacy. Dian...

Episode 110: Darkness News Update with Scott Wachter Dec 19, 2023

19 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from this episode: Moths on the Run Birds on the Wing Lights on the Shard Trees in your House

Episode 109: Outdoor Light at Night is at a Crossroads with Buddy Stefanoff

13 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Light pollution is harmful. Buddy Stefanoff is working on it - to the tune of about 5 years ahead of anybody else. Buddy and Crossroads LED are consci...

Episode 108: The Different Forms of Darkness with Jacqueline Yallop

06 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

"Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing." --Benjamin Franklin We think we’ve covered both bases in this episode. Jacquel...

Episode 107: Darkness News Update with Scott Wachter Dec 5, 2023

05 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from this episode: Bridge Lighting Blocking Fish Sea Turtle Records Light Pollution Bylaws on the Rise And the Award Goes To…

Episode 106: Admit To Our Mistakes with Noah Sabatier

29 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

High Pressure Sodium might be the best street lights for our rods and cones, but LED is here to stay, so we’re going to have to figure it out. Noah ...

Episode 105: Darkness News Update with Scott Wachter Nov 21, 2023

23 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from the Darkness News are: - Updates From DarkSky International - Vision Charts - Highway Disco - Wasatch LDS Temple Update

Episode 104: Low Hanging Fruit with John Barentine

22 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This is John Barentine’s second appearance and we still haven’t exhausted the conversation. How do we solve the light pollution problem? John has ...

Episode 103: Making the City Safer for Birds with Jin Bai

15 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Jin joins us from North Carolina where he is, along with earning his Ph.D, doing his best to reduce - or eliminate - bird-window collisions. In fact w...

Episode 102: Half a Million Satellites with Dr. Jeremy Tregloan-Reed

08 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From the first faint signals from Sputnik in 1957 to an estimated half a million satellites orbiting the earth in 2030 - yeah, we were shocked too! Th...

Episode 101: Darkness News Update November 7th, 2023

07 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from the Darkness News are:-       The Royal Society Publications this Month-       LDS Project Updates-       Virginia Observa...

Episode 100: The System is Broken with Mark Baker

01 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Mark Baker is back and he’s still advocating for people who experience the harmful effects of LED light. Mark tells us about some ongoing litigation...

Episode 99: Advocacy With Hope with Aparna Venkatesan and John Barentine

26 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Watch this episode and you’ll feel the hope and positivity emanating from your screen from Aparna and John. Michael discusses, with Aparna and John,...

Episode 98: Darkness News Update October 24th, 2023

24 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from the darkness news are:-       Scientific Consensus-       1000 Bird Strikes in One Night-       Chile Restores Darkness- ...

Episode 97: Darkness News Update October 10th, 2023

10 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from the darkness news are:-       ALAN Linked with Breast Cancer-       France Powers Ahead on Night Conservation-       Borde...

Episode 96: Embracing the Humanity Behind The Science with Hannah Dalgleish

27 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Hannah practices “place-based” research. Rather than finding international or national solutions, she advocates for small scale “place-based” ...

Episode 95: Darkness News Update September 26th, 2023

26 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from the darkness news are: - Charting New Harms of ALAN - Speakers from Under One Sky - Bird’s Eye Views Are Shrinking - Pandas Get ...

Episode 94: Don’t Blame The Lights with Elisa Hillgen

20 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It’s about communication, spreading knowledge, and good lighting. As a member of Lighting Urban Community International (LUCI), Elisa is one of many...

Episode 93: Enforcing The Ordinances with Rachel Tighe

13 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Rachel comes to us from the Sea Turtle Conservancy in Florida. She’s doing her part to protect the turtles in so many ways. She helps to conduct cod...

Episode 92: Darkness News Update September 12th, 2023

12 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from the darkness news world are: - Night Shift Work is Bad for Your Memory - Giving Insomnia to Molluscs and Rodents - Circadian Lamps ...

Episode 91: Darkness News Update August 29th, 2023

30 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Highlights from the darkness news word are: - Blue blocking lenses don't work - Municipal governments leading on bird safety - DarkSky's photo cont...

Episode 90: Are LEDs Harmful? With Mark Baker

28 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

LEDs came along in the early 2000’s. They emitted light. They were energy efficient. What could be bad? Ask Mark Baker who’s highly sensitive to c...

Episode 89: Can You See The Stars Tonight? With Anna Terreros-Martin

23 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Our host, Michael, has learned a lot from reading children's books to his kids. Anna’s book, “Can You See The Stars Tonight?” we’re sure, is n...

Episode 88: Darkness News Update August 14, 2023

17 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Find the latest news in the Restoring Darkness front. Highlights of this episode: - University of Pennsylvania Study Shows Staying Up All Night Might ...

Episode 87: Darkness Deficiency with Dr. Catherine Darley

16 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Darley gives us a new term (that we’re totally stealing!). Instead of describing light pollution to people as too much light, she feels people r...

Episode 86: Sky Glow Disrupts Biological Processes with Dr. Tom Davies & Prof. Tim Smyth

02 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

If bright light at night bothers you, it is much worse for marine life, and they don’t realize it, they just react. Their instinctual biological pro...

Episode 85: Special Release - Live from The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History With Harold Wallace

26 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Harold Wallace, Jr., is curator of the Electricity Collections at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Responsible for over 25,000 o...

Episode 84: Special Release - Live from The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History With Shannon Willis

26 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Shannon Willis is an exhibition and graphic designer, originally from Maryland, now residing in North Bethesda. Alongside her life as a designer, she ...

Episode 83: Special Release - Live from The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History With Juliana Olsson

26 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Juliana Olsson is an exhibit writer and editor at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History. In order to write all the labels visitors wi...

Episode 82: Consensus Based Not Evidence Based with Dr. Christopher Kyba

26 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It’s been over 5 years since Dr. Kyba was on the Get A Grip On Lighting podcast. Between then and now, we created Restoring Darkness which is a much...

Episode 81: Wayfinding Landscape Lighting with Dan Jobbins

20 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dan is a landscape lighting designer and he is on our side. He tries to stay away from “on at dusk off at dawn” sensors. As Dan says, for good des...

Episode 80: The Darkness News Update July 19, 2023

19 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Scott Wachter, from the Lighting Industry News Brief (https://naild.org/lighting-industry-news-brief) joins Michael Colligan to bring you the latest n...

Episode 79: Voices In The Wilderness with Todd Burlet

13 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Just like we’ve been saying all along, Todd doesn’t want to take away everyone's light at night. He just wants people to be mindful and reasonable...

Episode 78: The Darkness News Update July 12, 2023

12 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Scott Wachter, from the Lighting Industry News Brief (https://naild.org/lighting-industry-news-brief) joins Michael Colligan to bring you the latest n...

Episode 77: Save Wasatch Back Dark Skies with Shawn Savarino & Lisa Bahash

05 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Lighting And Darkness Foundation is taking on its first project! With your donations (please donate at https://restoringdarkness.com/save-the-nigh...

Episode 76: Exhibiting The Night Sky with Dr. Kimberly Arcand, Stephen Loring, and Jill Johnson

29 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Michael talks with our guests about the new Smithsonian exhibit, “Lights Out: Recovering Our Night Sky. It sounds like this exhibit will convince an...

Episode 75: The Darkness News Update June 28, 2023

28 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Join us for our inaugural episode of The Darkness News Update. Scott Wachter, from the Lighting Industry News Brief (https://naild.org/lighting-indust...

Episode 74: Light Pollution Is Pollution With Dawn Brown

21 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Michael welcomes a fellow Canadian to the podcast. Michael and Dawn discuss the never ending pursuit of continuous improvement, the interchangeable us...

Episode 73: The Bees of the Night with Dr. Zoë Randle

08 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Randle comes to us from the U.K. based Butterfly Conservation, one of the largest insect conservation organizations in the world. Dr. Randle point...

Episode 72: Darkness For Tranquility with Mike Hawtin

24 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Mike comes to us from the North York Moors National Park in the north of England. Mike has done ALOT to fight light pollution in his area. He has: dev...

Episode 71: Eliminating Sensory Pollution with Dr. Jesse Barber

10 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Here at Restoring Darkness, we are on a mission to eliminate light pollution. Dr. Barber wants to tackle “sensory pollution.” He is doing that by ...

Episode 70: Less Is More with Kathryn Toth

03 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

You’d think a landscape lighting designer wouldn’t really be concerned with sky glow. “Just light up the landscape and the sky be damned!” But...

Episode 69: It’s A Movement with Karolina Zielińska-Dąbkowska

19 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Sometimes it’s a good idea to go to the source. So we went to the founder of the Responsible Outdoor Light At Night conference (ROLAN), Karolina Zie...

Episode 68: The Turtles Nest Again with Dr. Sheldon Plentovich

12 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

If you ever doubted the impact on wildlife of humans just being around, let Sheldon tell you how the turtle nests in Hawaii bounced back in 2020. Luck...

Episode 67: Advertising Light Pollution with Charlotte Gage

29 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We all know cities are a big contributor to light pollution. Charlotte Gage from Adfree Cities in the United Kingdom, contends that one of the biggest...

Episode 66: Insecurity Lighting with Roland Dechesne

15 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Roland is from the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, but he speaks proficiently, beyond the perspective of astronomy, on many of the other aspects...

Episode 65: Cutting Through the Jargon with Art with Rayan Khan

08 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Rayan began a career in aircraft maintenance, but he went from aerospace to space - his interest in cosmology led to him creating Cosmic Tribe, making...

Episode 64: Get the Darkness Out of the Shadows with Johan Eklöf

15 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

You can read Johan’s book, The Darkness Manifesto: How Light Pollution Threatens the Ancient Rhythms of Life which was just released in North Americ...

Episode 63: Painting the Night Sky with Valerie Shrimplin

08 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It’s not too long ago that the Sun and Universe revolved around the Earth. That was the thinking until science and the arts began to see that the da...

Episode 62: Keeping the Urban Out of Rural with Georgia MacMillan

01 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Climate change. Air pollution. Plastics. Chemicals. Pollution is a challenge. How do we deal with light pollution? As Georgia says, “with the flick ...

Episode 61: Designing Darkness with Camilla Rathsach

11 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Camilla has an interesting way of looking at lighting design. Rather than a lighting designer, she calls herself a “darkness designer.” Camilla ex...

Episode 60: What We’ve Learned with Michael Colligan & John Bullock

28 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this special year-end episode, Michael and John discuss issues that have come up over the past year in the Darkness Restoration and Preservation mo...

Episode 59: De-Illumination of the Night Sky with Sabine Frank

14 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Sabine is a full time Dark Sky Officer for the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Sternenpark Rhön. Sabine explains to Michael how she has become an expert ...

Episode 58: The Night is a Realm with Kerem Asfuroglu

07 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Michael Colligan was inspired to be a Dark Sky advocate by William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night's Dream.” The stars have inspired countless ...

Episode 57: Well Lit, Not Brightly Lit with Mark Major

30 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Mark originally wanted to be a painter and painting to him was like subtracting light as paint is added to a white canvas. Conversely, in lighting, on...

Episode 56: Dark Skies vs. Skis with Bernd Pröschold

16 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Bernd is an astrophotographer based out of Cologne, Germany. Bernd tells Michael how hard it is to find dark skies for his astrophotography. Even driv...

Episode 55: The Pilot Project For Pilots with Thomas Herrholz

26 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Wind turbines are a zero emissions solution to energy needs. But with solutions, new problems always arise. We’ve all seen the giant wind turbines t...

Episode 54: Zen And The Art Of The Night Sky with Mark Westmoquette

12 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Mark discusses with Michael, practicing mindfulness when under the night sky. He proposes that astronomy was the first science, out of necessity. The ...

Episode 53: The Guided Dark Sky Experience with Etta Dannemann

22 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Michael and John discuss with Etta how to engage people with Dark Skies so as to bring them back. Etta is taking steps to do just that with her compan...

Episode 52: The Legal Recognition Of Light Pollution with Yana Yakushina

10 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

There’s air pollution, water pollution and noise pollution. Why hasn’t light pollution been recognised the same way? This is the question Michael ...

Episode 51: Light Pollution Cannot Be Measured…Yet with Ken Walczak

02 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As you’ve heard on this podcast before, existing satellites are incapable of detecting the blue light of LED’s and thus produce incomplete imagery...

Episode 50: Light Pollution is Real with Catherine Pérez Vega

17 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Michael discusses with Catherine Pérez Vega the question: Is light a pollutant? Catherine is researching the effects of artificial light on organisms...

Episode 49: Special Release: Night Restoration and Preservation with Diane Knutson

03 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This special release of our series features Diane Knutson, a regional dark sky advocate / business owner turned Dark Sky International Board President...

Episode 48: Humans Are Not A Nocturnal Species with Professor Russell Foster

27 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Michael and John are thrilled to have Professor Foster on the podcast. He brings his deep scientific knowledge and understanding of circadian photobio...

Episode 47: What is Perception? What Is Safety? with Kate S. Hickcox

06 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode you get three unique perspectives on urban lighting. Co-host Michael Colligan in Canada, co-host John Bullock in the U.K and guest Kat...

Episode 46: Light Hygiene with Bastian Groiss

15 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As Bastian Groiss says, people see light as an enabler for vision. But light - sunlight in particular - is so much more. It triggers hormonal reaction...

Episode 45: The Invisible Infrastructure with Nona Schulte-Römer

08 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

John Bullock, guest co-host on this episode, asks the question, “How do we shift the argument so that we can start to talk about the reality of what...

Episode 44: The Finish Line with Michael Marlin

18 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Michael and Michael - or “Marlin” as he likes to be referred to - delve into the practical and spiritual aspects of restoring darkness. Practical,...

Episode 43: Darkness Acupuncture with Dr. Taylor Stone

04 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Here on Restoring Darkness, we’ve talked about the impact of light pollution, how to restore darkness, and now, in this episode, Michael discusses, ...

Episode 42: From Prison Yards To National Parks with Tim Brothers (Part 2)

20 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In part 2 of this podcast (find part 1 here:  https://restoringdarkness.com/episodes/41-from-prison-yards-to-national-parks), Michael and Tim continu...

Episode 41: From Prison Yards To National Parks with Tim Brothers (Part 1)

13 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This one was so interesting, Michael let it go for an hour and 15 minutes. So we’ve broken it into 2 parts. In this, part 1, the conversation ranges...

Episode 40: The Business Case for Controls is Right Outside with Ron Kuszmar

30 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Ron installs and commissions lighting controls. He is an integrator who knows his stuff. In this Restoring Darkness episode, he and Michael make the c...

Episode 39: Industry Alignment with Terry McGowan

16 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Terry brings his vast amount of knowledge and experience to the question of industry alignment in the quest to reduce light pollution. Michael talks w...

Episode 38: The Will To Deploy with Peter Brown

02 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Where does the resistance to the adoption of darkness friendly lighting come from?  Michael poses this question to Peter Brown. Michael and Peter dis...

Episode 37: In Praise Of The Dark Sky Park with Rémi Boucher

16 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Scientific coordinator for the Mont-Megantic International Dark Sky Reserve, Rémi Boucher has been passionate about the starry sky and the night expe...

Episode 36: #36 Dark Sky Restoration is a Win Win Win....Win

25 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Abdul Dremali is an Palestinian/Egyptian artist with a passion for the night sky. Currently based in Reno, Nevada, he travels the world in search of d...

Episode 35: The Importance of Non-Human Perspective with Hannah Moon

15 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Hannah Moon is a PhD Candidate at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa in Dr. Megan Porter’s vision lab.  Her work focuses on understanding the ph...

Episode 34: Does Light Pollution Drive Disease Transmission? with Dr. Meredith Kernbach

08 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Meredith Kernbach is a postdoctoral scholar at the University of South Florida, St. Petersburg in the lab of Dr. Mya Breitbart. For her doctoral d...

Episode 33: Finding the Sweet Spot with Dr. Andreas Jechow

01 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Andreas Jechow is an interdisciplinary physicist with a broad expertise in photonics, the science of light. Earlier in his career Andreas worked i...

Episode 32: Extinction Of Experience with Sam Illingworth

24 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

 Dr. Sam Illingworth is an Associate Professor at Edinburgh Napier University, UK. He is a leading expert in using poetry to develop a dialogue betwe...

Episode 31: Preserving Nantucket’s Dark Sky Heritage with Gail Walker

17 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Gail Walker is the founder of Nantucket Lights, an all-volunteer citizen advocacy group recently formed to combat the growing light pollution on Nantu...

Episode 30: Light Pollution Erases Stories with Hilding Neilson

10 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Hilding Neilson is an interdisciplinary scientist currently working with the David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the Universit...

Episode 29: Half the Park Is After Dark with Dr. Tyler Nordgren

28 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Tyler Nordgren is an artist, author, astronomer, and night sky ambassador. He holds a Ph.D. in Astronomy from Cornell University where he did work...

Episode 28: The Weird Eyes Of Animals with Megan Porter PhD

27 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Megan Porter PhD is an Associate Professor in the School of Life Sciences at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.  Her research program is focused o...

Episode 27: Astronomy Reduces Human Arrogance with Douglas Arion PhD

20 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Douglas Arion, PhD is the founder and director of Mountains of Stars, a public science outreach and education program that engages the public with ‘...

Episode 26: The Secret World Beneath The Ocean with Dr. Micah Brodsky

13 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Micah Brodsky is a wildlife veterinarian who focuses on marine animal medicine, research, and conservation and is the Director of Conservation Med...

Episode 25: Eclipse Chasing On Planes with Kelly Beatty

06 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Kelly Beatty has been explaining the science and wonder of astronomy to the public since 1974. An award-winning writer and communicator, he specialize...

Episode 24: Solving Light Pollution at the Speed of Light with Bettymaya Foott

30 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Bettymaya Foott works for the International Dark-Sky Association as Director of Engagement. Preserving dark skies is her life goal and she finds that ...

Episode 23: Every Light Matters with Ashley Wilson

22 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Ashley is the Director of Conservation for the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) where she collaborates with advocates and volunteers around th...

Episode 22: Our Fear of the Dark is Learned with James Karl Fischer

15 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Fischer operates The Zoological Lighting Institute, a 501 c(3) dedicated to supporting the sciences of light and life through the arts for animal ...

Episode 21: Acceptance Comes With Understanding with Samyukta Manikumar

09 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Samyukta is an advocate with the International Dark Sky Association, and a member of their International Committee. She currently works in Slovenia, d...

Episode 20: Dreams Are Your Free Therapy with Peter Veto PhD

08 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

If you were fascinated with the previous episode with Peter, listen to this one.  He’s an expert in the field of human perception, but when you’r...

Episode 19: Our Approach To Lighting Is Not Evidence Based with Dr. Rajaram Bhagavathula

18 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Rajaram Bhagavathula is a Senior Research Associate in the Division of Vehicle, Driver, & System Safety at Virginia Tech Transportation Instit...

Episode 18: Starving for Scotobiology with Robert Dick

11 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Robert is the founder and CEO of the Canadian Scotobiology Group Inc. that raises awareness of the impact of artificial light at night (ALAN) on wildl...

Episode 17: Confusion in Perception with Peter Veto PhD

28 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Peter has a PhD in Psychology studying human perception, action, and the link between them, with over a decade of experience in conducting research in...

Episode 16: The Fight Against Light Privilege with Andy Kreyche

21 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Andy has been involved in astronomy education and outreach for over 25 years, and in the planetarium field for over 20.  Andy tells us about his succ...