Glowatch: launch an app to report sources of light pollution throughout Chile

The citizen science tool aims for people to get involved in light pollution issues, learn what type of lighting generates pollution, and then be able to report those polluting sources they identify in their environment.

 

Fundación Cielos de Chile, Fundación Ciluz, the Center for Astrophysics and Related Technologies CATA, and the Center for Mathematical Modeling developed the application Glowatch which will allow people to report sources of light pollution. The app will be available from January 18 and information can be uploaded from all over Chile.

Each year, light pollution increases by 2% worldwide. Throughout the territory, only 1% of the population has the privilege of living in areas with dark skies free of pollution. The excess of artificial light not only negatively impacts the quality of night skies for astronomical observation, but also has negative effects on biodiversity and people’s health. The new lighting standard –which will be in effect from October of this year– seeks to reverse this problem by establishing guidelines for sustainable lighting in outdoor spaces throughout the national territory.

“Light, unlike other polluting sources, is invisible. If you see water running, you go and turn it off, or if you see a river with oil, you also go and report it. In contrast, light pollution is quite silent and invisible to the eyes of those not involved in the issue,” explained Ximena Muñoz, executive director of Fundación Ciluz.

This is why Fundación Cielos de Chile, Fundación Ciluz, the Center for Astrophysics and Related Technologies CATA, and the Center for Mathematical Modeling joined this cause and developed an application that seeks to involve people in reducing light pollution, learning what it is, how to identify it, and being able to report those polluting sources that affect their environment.

“This application will not only provide us with valuable information regarding the location and type of different polluting sources in Chile, but also how people commit to the prevention and reduction of light pollution,” commented Daniela González, executive director of Fundación Cielos de Chile.

How to report

Glowatch is an easy-to-use WhatsApp application. It allows users to report cases of light pollution coming from, for example, billboards, spotlights, streetlights, among other sources, which due to their intensity, direction of light, or color, are negatively affecting people or natural environments.

To report sources of light pollution, users only need to send the information via WhatsApp to the number (+56) 982276560. They can also make reports through the website glowatch.cl by clicking on the WhatsApp icon available on the platform. Additionally, on the web portal, they can access the complete and georeferenced database of all received reports.

Coordination with the Environmental Superintendence

The new lighting standard establishes restrictions on lighting fixtures throughout the national territory, which will pose a challenge for the Environmental Superintendence that will have to oversee various points in the country. This is why the second phase of the project is designed for the reports made by each citizen to be taken into account by the regulatory body.

As explained by Dr. Elise Servajean, general manager of the CATA Center: “The next step would be for this application to connect with the environmental institutionality to help make reports of light pollution sources more quickly and efficiently. Nowadays, reports are made manually through a form, but we want to facilitate the process so that more people join in the protection of dark skies.”

Additionally, the scientists behind the platform ensure that this data will be very useful for scientific research. “From the CMM, we developed the IT architecture of the platform and we see that there is clearly a possibility to generate data. We are available to contribute to data analysis topics and do science from this, so we hope to continue conversations and continue with this alliance,” assured Jaime Ortega, principal investigator of the CMM.

From Fundación Cielos de Chile, they call on people to use the application. “In this first stage, we hope that as many people as possible will enter Glowatch and use it to report polluting sources and together support compliance with the new lighting standard,” concluded Daniela González.

 

Relive the launch event here