We make quantitative measurements of the night sky brightness and analyse these.
The Kapteyn Institute aims to:
Below you can find an overview of the initiatives surrounding darkness and light pollution in which the Kapteyn Institute is involved:
As a part of the Interreg North Sea Programme, this international collaborative project of universities, national parks, ports and municipalities focuses on reducing light pollution in the North Sea region. The Darker Sky research group (Rudolf Agricola School) addresses the urgent need for sustainable lighting solutions that balance safety and functionality with environmental conservation.
In the new project Minder licht, meer zien the University of Groningen is collaborating with the Natuur en Milieufederaties to restore darkness in 3 iconic areas: the Wadden area, the Veluwe, and National Park Nieuw Land. Our ambition is to make these pilot areas 25 to 50% darker in 4 years. The Kapteyn Institute contributes by taking measurements.
The project Donkerte Dichtbij builds on the experience of the past programme Donkerte van de Wadden in cooperation with Science LinX. In this citizen science project, we involve schools, civil society organisations and families in discovering, monitoring and protecting nature at night. We help 10 Groningen schools transform their schoolyards into “night gardens” and we organise a large citizen science competition to motivate citizens to create the best night garden.
Programma Donkerte van de Wadden raises awareness of the importance of dark nights. Together with entrepreneurs and local partners, we developed a string of darkness experience spots along the entire Wadden coast where everyone is welcom to experience the unique darkness of the Wadden for themselves.
At the heart of this Interreg North Sea project, an international collaboration of three universities, lies the pursuit of a standardised, scientifically grounded method for accurately measuring light pollution using Sky Quality Cameras (SQC). The project efforts continue in the Darker Sky project.
Using Sky Quality Meters (SQM) researchers of the Kapteyn Institute measure the brightness of the sky in the northern part of the Netherlands. The measuring network has been set up as part of Programma Donkerte van de Wadden in collaboration with Staatsbosbeheer, Natuurmonumenten and the Natuur- en Milieufederaties of Friesland and Groningen. A few measurements are executed at the request of Provincie Groningen.
The University of Groningen, municipality of Het Hogeland and the province of Groningen are working together with local entrepreneurs in a joint effort to reduce light emissions in the harbour of Lauwersoog by 50% within three years, benefiting not only the surrounding natural environment, but also resulting in energy savings for the participating businesses. The Kapteyn Institute contributes by taking measurements.
During the Night of the Night, organized by the Nature and Environment Federations, various activities embracing darkness are organized throughout the country, including by the University of Groningen. From nocturnal walks with forest rangers to stargazing evenings at observatories; participants get the chance to experience the night in a unique way.
In 2016, Lauwersmeer National Park was named a Dark Sky Park, which means that it is dark in this place, this darkness will be preserved and that as a visitor, you are welcome to experience the darkness here at night. The Forestry Commission and the University of Groningen work closely together to preserve the darkness in the area and use it for both scientific research and public activities.
