Night Sky Quality Measurements at the ATA50 Telescope

One of the most important factors affecting the quality of the sky in astronomy is the light pollution (luminance of the night sky). This effect occurs by using artificial light sources of outdoor lighting in the wrong way (in the wrong place and at the wrong time, incorrect choice of fixtures or light bulbs, misdirected lighting or excessive amount of light, etc). As a consequence of that, a large proportion of this artificial light, and the energy generated to produce, is wasted in this way. Light pollution can be controlled by simply turning off unnecessary light and using light only what is actually needed, when and where it is needed. Although, in many countries legislation is designed to limit light pollution from outdoor light fixtures, but still in many places especially in our country we face with light pollution problem due to wrong outdoor lighting.