Abstract: A recurring question arises when trying to characterize, by means of measurements or theoretical calculations, the zenithal night sky brightness throughout a large territory: how many samples per square kilometre are needed? The optimum sampling distance should allow reconstructing, with sufficient accuracy, the continuous zenithal brightness map across the whole region, whilst at the same time avoiding unnecessary and redundant oversampling. This paper attempts to provide some tentative answers to this issue, using two complementary tools: the luminance structure function and the Nyquist–Shannon spatial sampling theorem. The analysis of several regions of the world, based on the data from the New world atlas of artificial night sky brightness, suggests that, as a rule of thumb, about one measurement per square kilometre could be sufficient for determining the zenithal night sky brightness of artificial origin at any point in a region to within ±0.1 magV arcsec–2 (in the root-mean-square sense) of its true value in the Johnson–Cousins V band. The exact reconstruction of the zenithal night sky brightness maps from samples taken at the Nyquist rate seems to be considerably more demanding.

Abstract: Light plays a key role in the regulation of different physiological processes, through several visual and non-visual retinal phototransduction channels whose basic features are being unveiled by recent research. The growing body of evidence on the significance of these effects has sparked a renewed interest in the determination of the light field at the entrance pupil of the eye in indoor spaces. Since photic interactions are strongly wavelength-dependent, a significant effort is being devoted to assess the relative merits of the spectra of the different types of light sources available for use at home and in the workplace. The spectral content of the light reaching the observer eyes in indoor spaces, however, does not depend exclusively on the sources: it is partially modulated by the spectral reflectance of the walls and surrounding surfaces, through the multiple reflections of the light beams along all possible paths from the source to the observer. This modulation can modify significantly the non-visual photic inputs that would be produced by the lamps alone, and opens the way for controlling—to a certain extent—the subject's exposure to different regions of the optical spectrum. In this work we evaluate the expected magnitude of this effect and we show that, for factorizable sources, the spectral modulation can be conveniently described in terms of a set of effective filter-like functions that provide useful insights for lighting design and light pollution assessment. The radiance field also provides a suitable bridge between indoor and outdoor light pollution studies.

Abstract: Sky Quality Meter, a low cost and pocket size night sky brightness photometer, opens to the general public the possibility to quantify the quality of the night sky. Expecting a large diffusion of measurements taken with this instrument, I tested and characterized it. I analyzed with synthetic photometry and laboratory measurements the relationship between the SQM photometrical system and the main systems used in light pollution studies. I evaluated the conversion factors to Johnson’s B and V bands, CIE photopic and CIE scotopic responses for typical spectra and the spectral mismatch correction factors when specific filters are added.

Abstract: Human vision provides useful information about the shape and color of the objects around us. It works well in many, but not all, lighting conditions. Since the advent of human-made light sources, it has been important to understand how illumination affects vision quality, but this has been surprisingly difficult. The widespread introduction of solid-state light emitters has increased the urgency of this problem. Experts still debate how lighting can best enable high-quality vision-a key issue since about one-fifth of global electrical power production is used to make light. Photometry, the measurement of the visual quantity of light, is well established, yet significant uncertainties remain. Colorimetry, the measurement of color, has achieved good reproducibility, but researchers still struggle to understand how illumination can best enable high-quality color vision. Fortunately, in recent years, considerable progress has been made. Here, we summarize the current understanding and discuss key areas for future study.

Abstract: Artificial light at night has affected most of the natural nocturnal landscapes worldwide and the subsequent light pollution has diverse effects on flora, fauna and human well-being. To evaluate the environmental impacts of light pollution, it is crucial to understand both the natural and artificial components of light at night under all weather conditions. The night sky brightness for clear skies is relatively well understood and a reference point for a lower limit is defined. However, no such reference point exists for cloudy skies. While some studies have examined the brightening of the night sky by clouds in urban areas, the published data on the (natural) darkening by clouds is very sparse. Knowledge of reference points for the illumination of natural nocturnal environments however, is essential for experimental design and ecological modeling to assess the impacts of light pollution. Here we use differential all-sky photometry with a commercial digital camera to investigate how clouds darken sky brightness at two rural sites. The spatially resolved data enables us to identify and study the nearly unpolluted parts of the sky and to set an upper limit on ground illumination for overcast nights at sites without light pollution.