56 research outputs found
The Spectrum of the Night Sky Over Kitt Peak: Changes Over Two Decades
New absolute spectrophotometry of the Kitt Peak night sky has been obtained
in 2009/10, which we compare to previously published data obtained in 1988 and
1999, allowing us to look for changes over the past two decades. A comparison
of the data between 1988, 1999 and 2009/10 reveals that the sky brightness of
Kitt Peak has stayed remarkably constant over the past 20 years. Compared to
1988, the 2009/10 data show no change in the sky brightness at Zenith though,
as expected, the sky glow has increased most dramatically in the direction of
Tucson. Comparisons between the 1999 and 2009/10 data suggest that the sky has
actually decreased in brightness compared to 10 years ago. However, the older
data were both taken during times of increased solar activity. When we correct
the measurements for the solar irradiance fluctuations, we find that compared
to 20 years ago, the sky is ~0.1 magnitude brighter at Zenith and ~0.3
magnitudes brighter towards Tucson. But even after these corrections, we still
find that the sky over Kitt Peak is comparable to what it was 10 years ago at
Zenith and ~0.1 magnitude darker towards Tucson. This suggests that the
strengthened lighting ordinances Tucson and Pima County established in the
early 2000s have been quite effective. With some care, the Kitt Peak night sky
will remain this dark many years into the future.Comment: Will appear in the October 2010 issue of PAS
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