Suppose you saw or heard an ad that proclaimed, “Free Endangered Gifts now available! Limited time offer! Get yours while supplies last!” Would you immediately go into fight mode and want to throttle those responsible for such an irresponsible ad? Or would you wonder what rare items might be available?
I first raised this possibility in a past commentary about holiday gifts. Back then I noted that these gifts didn’t involve endangered animals, plants, or their respective body parts. I wrote about giving yourself and loved ones of all species a gift—or maybe just a taste of a gift—far more endangered than that.
Not even 5 years later and the situation has changed dramatically. Initially, the factors that contributed to the gifts endangerment even to the point of extinction in many areas persisted. But in a remarkably short, and alas perhaps only a temporary period of time, conditions changed for the better. The following reconsiders the original discussion in light of what is occurring now.
Then and now and throughout the year, people worldwide from diverse backgrounds will celebrate multiple holidays. As we have become a more global community, traditions from one religion or group of people become incorporated into those of others to the enrichment of both. However two natural wonders that played a pivotal role in the early evolution of humans and their holidays continued to become rarer with each passing year. Were these plants or animals, we would call them endangered. But we do not. Even though their loss greatly contributes to the loss of all those who do show up on the Endangered Species List and diminish the quality of our own lives. Nor do they appear on the list of World Heritage sites or any one of several lists of natural wonders of the world. Even so, for those who have experienced these gifts, various holidays and indeed life itself wouldn’t be the same without them.
The first gift is a view of the night sky undiminished by artificial light. If a star shined in the east or an angel descended over many areas to herald a world-changing event today, no one would see them. Data tabulated in The New World Atlas of the Artificial Night Sky Brightness reveals that 80% of the world and 99% of the US and European populations live under light-polluted skies. More than 60% of the Europeans and 80% of the North Americans no longer can see the Milky way at night. Among them is a growing number who have never seen the Milky Way except in pictures or videos.
Theoretically if people never see something they won’t miss it, right? But what happens when they do? A clue to this came in 1994 when the Northridge Earthquake knocked out power in the Los Angeles area. Numerous residents who saw the Milky Way for the first time called the emergency line to report an alien presence. No doubt some of them were grabbing their weapons. No doubt many more would grab their even higher-powered weapons today and some even might start blasting away. This does not bode well for any celestial visits from angels or jolly old elves during the holidays!
Compare the following images of the United States. The first is a photo of the night sky with its artificial lights taken from space, courtesy of C. Mayhew and R. Simmon, NASA and the National Geophysical Data Center (now known as the National Centers for Environmental Information). Imagine all those artificial lights gobbling up the night sky with all its stars, planets, comets and other wonders at a rate of approximately 6% a year, which is it. At the same time, much of the existing human-generated light as well as the artificial light-spewing invaders is becoming brighter as LEDs slowly but surely replace other artificial light sources. Simultaneously the higher replacement costs associated with the increased demand for these more energy-efficient light sources will mean fewer funds for proper shielding to focus these lights downward.
This brings me to the second endangered gift also currently available for a limited time only: (relative) silence.
Collecting sound as well as light data is an on-going project by the Nation Parks Service Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division to enhance our knowledge of sound and light and their effects on the plant and animal wildlife in our national parks. The site also includes a collection of audio postcards among other recordings of animal and other nonhuman park sounds that are both informative and delightful.
Gorden Hempton’s work on the endangerment of natural sound began years ago when he noticed how often the sounds of human activities increasingly overwhelmed the sounds of nature. As a result, he began seeking out the quietest places and recording them, much as a biologist or botanist would record the lives of an endangered species. By his count, the number of places worldwide where one can go for 15 minutes without hearing a human-made sound is pitifully small and shrinking. But thanks to his pioneering work, there are many more people interested in sound pollution and its negative effects on body and mind. You can hear him informally talking about his work in Olympia National Park here and listen to his TED Talk here:
You don’t need a degree in rocket science to notice that the areas with the most lights are also the noisiest, or to surmise that this occurs because the two phenomena are human population and technology-dependent. However, just as the absence of artificial light pollution in no way equals total darkness, the absence of human-made sounds in no way means total silence. Instead of vehicles, factories, shopping malls and other human activities, you hear the sounds of nature: wind, rain, swaying and creaking plants and trees, leaves or snow falling, all kinds of animals communicating via barks, yips, growls, hisses, croaks, chirps and trills. And on a really quiet day or still night you can hear the beating of your own heart… Which for some reason really creeps some people out. But it shouldn’t because natural silence is the sound of a living planet, and each of us is part of it.
One unintended consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic is that the reduction in light and sound pollution associated with the decreased human activity seems to effect people in opposite ways. Some people are so greatly disturbed by the lack of a human-orchestrated light and soundtrack to their daily lives, I easily can imagine them being terrified by the vastness of the night sky revealed when many of the lights that define their human-made world went out. I easily can imagine them being startled by the activities of all the wild creatures that increasingly inhabit even our most populated areas. It makes some people feel uneasy, anxious, and vulnerable. Perhaps it even causes some to say or do stupid things in an attempt to control a world that suddenly seems a lot larger, more complex, and less controllable and predictable than that within their human-made bubble
A second group are those fortunate enough to live in a location normally graced with less light and sound pollution than many. It’s by no means perfect and over the years as the human population has increased as has its concurrent habitat destruction, so has the amount of sound and light pollution. Prior to the light and sound pollution decrease triggered by COVID-19, the last respite here at the little house on the hill was an unintended consequence of Hurricane Irene in 2011. In addition to wiping out phone and electrical service, the storm destroyed two bridges on my road, one of them just past my house. This effectively eliminated almost all road traffic. Like now, the human sounds were minimal and the views of the nighttime skies spectacular. So were the sunrises and sunsets with their natural light and sound shows.
Post-Irene and now in the era of COVID-19, I value those free gifts of endangered natural light and sound more than ever. Because I know they will not last. I’ll continue to get up early and go out with the dogs and cat. I’ll continue to enjoy the enhanced canopy of stars, natural sounds and those at dawn and dusk, the cleanness of the air. I’ll continue to watch and listen to the sunrises and sunsets, the wind and rain. And I’ll continue to feel refreshed and at peace when I do.
So many human traditions worldwide are tied up with visions of a night sky filled with stars, so many stars the conscious mind freezes at the beauty of it all. Likewise, the natural sounds revealed by human silence. I don’t wish quarantines to protect us from serious diseases or weather-related disasters on anyone. But when and if such events occur–and it seems likely they will in this era of climate change and habitat destruction–consider finding yourself a patch of night sky as far away from artificial light and sound as possible. Take your dog with you. Look up at the stars above you and listen to the natural sounds around you. And if find yourself feeling impatient, bored, anxious or–the worst–fear or nothing while you’re out there you, you need the healing effects of these endangered gifts even more.
I first raised this possibility in a past commentary about holiday gifts. Back then I noted that these gifts didn’t involve endangered animals, plants, or their respective body parts. I wrote about giving yourself and loved ones of all species a gift—or maybe just a taste of a gift—far more endangered than that.
Not even 5 years later and the situation has changed dramatically. Initially, the factors that contributed to the gifts endangerment even to the point of extinction in many areas persisted. But in a remarkably short, and alas perhaps only a temporary period of time, conditions changed for the better. The following reconsiders the original discussion in light of what is occurring now.
Then and now and throughout the year, people worldwide from diverse backgrounds will celebrate multiple holidays. As we have become a more global community, traditions from one religion or group of people become incorporated into those of others to the enrichment of both. However two natural wonders that played a pivotal role in the early evolution of humans and their holidays continued to become rarer with each passing year. Were these plants or animals, we would call them endangered. But we do not. Even though their loss greatly contributes to the loss of all those who do show up on the Endangered Species List and diminish the quality of our own lives. Nor do they appear on the list of World Heritage sites or any one of several lists of natural wonders of the world. Even so, for those who have experienced these gifts, various holidays and indeed life itself wouldn’t be the same without them.
The first gift is a view of the night sky undiminished by artificial light. If a star shined in the east or an angel descended over many areas to herald a world-changing event today, no one would see them. Data tabulated in The New World Atlas of the Artificial Night Sky Brightness reveals that 80% of the world and 99% of the US and European populations live under light-polluted skies. More than 60% of the Europeans and 80% of the North Americans no longer can see the Milky way at night. Among them is a growing number who have never seen the Milky Way except in pictures or videos.
Theoretically if people never see something they won’t miss it, right? But what happens when they do? A clue to this came in 1994 when the Northridge Earthquake knocked out power in the Los Angeles area. Numerous residents who saw the Milky Way for the first time called the emergency line to report an alien presence. No doubt some of them were grabbing their weapons. No doubt many more would grab their even higher-powered weapons today and some even might start blasting away. This does not bode well for any celestial visits from angels or jolly old elves during the holidays!
Compare the following images of the United States. The first is a photo of the night sky with its artificial lights taken from space, courtesy of C. Mayhew and R. Simmon, NASA and the National Geophysical Data Center (now known as the National Centers for Environmental Information). Imagine all those artificial lights gobbling up the night sky with all its stars, planets, comets and other wonders at a rate of approximately 6% a year, which is it. At the same time, much of the existing human-generated light as well as the artificial light-spewing invaders is becoming brighter as LEDs slowly but surely replace other artificial light sources. Simultaneously the higher replacement costs associated with the increased demand for these more energy-efficient light sources will mean fewer funds for proper shielding to focus these lights downward.
This brings me to the second endangered gift also currently available for a limited time only: (relative) silence.
Below is a sound map of the US created by the National Parks Service Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division:
Collecting sound as well as light data is an on-going project by the Nation Parks Service Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division to enhance our knowledge of sound and light and their effects on the plant and animal wildlife in our national parks. The site also includes a collection of audio postcards among other recordings of animal and other nonhuman park sounds that are both informative and delightful.
Gorden Hempton’s work on the endangerment of natural sound began years ago when he noticed how often the sounds of human activities increasingly overwhelmed the sounds of nature. As a result, he began seeking out the quietest places and recording them, much as a biologist or botanist would record the lives of an endangered species. By his count, the number of places worldwide where one can go for 15 minutes without hearing a human-made sound is pitifully small and shrinking. But thanks to his pioneering work, there are many more people interested in sound pollution and its negative effects on body and mind. You can hear him informally talking about his work in Olympia National Park here and listen to his TED Talk here:
You don’t need a degree in rocket science to notice that the areas with the most lights are also the noisiest, or to surmise that this occurs because the two phenomena are human population and technology-dependent. However, just as the absence of artificial light pollution in no way equals total darkness, the absence of human-made sounds in no way means total silence. Instead of vehicles, factories, shopping malls and other human activities, you hear the sounds of nature: wind, rain, swaying and creaking plants and trees, leaves or snow falling, all kinds of animals communicating via barks, yips, growls, hisses, croaks, chirps and trills. And on a really quiet day or still night you can hear the beating of your own heart… Which for some reason really creeps some people out. But it shouldn’t because natural silence is the sound of a living planet, and each of us is part of it.
One unintended consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic is that the reduction in light and sound pollution associated with the decreased human activity seems to effect people in opposite ways. Some people are so greatly disturbed by the lack of a human-orchestrated light and soundtrack to their daily lives, I easily can imagine them being terrified by the vastness of the night sky revealed when many of the lights that define their human-made world went out. I easily can imagine them being startled by the activities of all the wild creatures that increasingly inhabit even our most populated areas. It makes some people feel uneasy, anxious, and vulnerable. Perhaps it even causes some to say or do stupid things in an attempt to control a world that suddenly seems a lot larger, more complex, and less controllable and predictable than that within their human-made bubble
A second group are those fortunate enough to live in a location normally graced with less light and sound pollution than many. It’s by no means perfect and over the years as the human population has increased as has its concurrent habitat destruction, so has the amount of sound and light pollution. Prior to the light and sound pollution decrease triggered by COVID-19, the last respite here at the little house on the hill was an unintended consequence of Hurricane Irene in 2011. In addition to wiping out phone and electrical service, the storm destroyed two bridges on my road, one of them just past my house. This effectively eliminated almost all road traffic. Like now, the human sounds were minimal and the views of the nighttime skies spectacular. So were the sunrises and sunsets with their natural light and sound shows.
Post-Irene and now in the era of COVID-19, I value those free gifts of endangered natural light and sound more than ever. Because I know they will not last. I’ll continue to get up early and go out with the dogs and cat. I’ll continue to enjoy the enhanced canopy of stars, natural sounds and those at dawn and dusk, the cleanness of the air. I’ll continue to watch and listen to the sunrises and sunsets, the wind and rain. And I’ll continue to feel refreshed and at peace when I do.
So many human traditions worldwide are tied up with visions of a night sky filled with stars, so many stars the conscious mind freezes at the beauty of it all. Likewise, the natural sounds revealed by human silence. I don’t wish quarantines to protect us from serious diseases or weather-related disasters on anyone. But when and if such events occur–and it seems likely they will in this era of climate change and habitat destruction–consider finding yourself a patch of night sky as far away from artificial light and sound as possible. Take your dog with you. Look up at the stars above you and listen to the natural sounds around you. And if find yourself feeling impatient, bored, anxious or–the worst–fear or nothing while you’re out there you, you need the healing effects of these endangered gifts even more.