WHERE IS THE 'TWINKLE, TWINKLE, LITTLE STAR'?

KUALA LUMPUR, March 11 (Bernama) – Remember the popular nursery rhyme
'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’?
The rhyme goes as:

“Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky! ……”

The lyrics were taken from an early 19th-century English poem, "The Star"
written by Jane Taylor.

NO MORE STARS AT NIGHT?

“I don’t see many stars lighting up the night sky now. Worse still, I can’t
see any star during most of the nights,” said businessman T.S. Wee.

Wee, also an environmentalist stays in Kota Damansara, near here. The
55-year-old businessman said he still could see some stars when he returned to
his home village near Tumpat in the east coast state of Kelantan.

The father of four said he remembered sitting outside his house or by simply
looking out from the window of the house to see many stars lighting up the night
sky during his boyhood days.

"My primary school science teacher also told us about the various
constellations of stars like the Big Dipper, Little Dipper, Big Bear and Orion
The Hunter that could be pictured by looking at the stars. Now it is rare to see
these stars," he said.

WHY IS THAT SO?

"I think it is due to light pollution particularly in the urban areas. That
is why we can see more stars in the night sky when we are at rural villages that
have less lightings as compared to towns and cities.

Light pollution is defined as any illumination of the night sky caused by
obtrusive artificial light.

Light pollution has become a serious environmental challenge. Most light
pollution is a result of urbanisation and poorly designed fixtures.

Experts say that much of the lighting that causes light pollution is
unnecessary. Among these light sources are the streetlamps, stadium lights and
advertising boards.

However light pollution can be controlled, according to experts. Authorities
can draw up regulations to reduce the unneccessary lightings while housing and
building developers can work on utilising energy efficient lighting and
fixtures.

OVER ILLUMINATION

Over illumination is one of the causes of light pollution. Over illumination
is the use of artificial light beyond its specified purpose.

Social activist Gurmukh Singh said it is excessive to leave the workplace
lights on after working hours.

"If we switched off the lights after working hours, we can also save the
energy," he said.

STREET LAMPS

Gurmukh Singh also said the light pollution in the atmosphere is
getting worse nowadays due to the illumination from the street lamps, outdoor
advertising, homes, airports and other sources.

“Every night millions of lighted sources send their energy skyward where air
molecules, airborne dust, and water vapour droplets reflect much of the light
back to Earth," he said.

According to Gurmukh Singh exterior home lighting is a primary source of
light pollution.

“Street lamps, stadium and sports fields, advertising boards and parking
lots, when not in use, also contributed to the problem.

He said not enabling to see stars in the night sky is most troubling for
children.

"Just imagine if generations of children in cities and suburban areas
growing up without knowing what a sky full of thousands of stars might look
like.

"People used to describe their beautiful experience in viewing the night
time sky. And now I am afraid that these people can count on their fingers the
number of times they have seen a night with many stars."