The Darkness News Update for December 11, 2025

NAILD

Highlights from this episode:  - hormone Therapy  - A Nice Cup of Tea  - Data Centers Across America  - Bylaws  Intro and outro music by Doctor Turtle  Sponsored by The National Association of Innovative Lighting Distributors visit https://naild.org/  Headlines and Sources can be found at https://restoringdarkness.com/  Find the Darkness News Update on BluSky https://bsky.app/profile/darknessnewsupdate.bsky.social  Find Restoring Darkness on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@restoringdarkness?lang=en

Transcript

00:00Hi there, I'm recording this on December 12th, 2025, and that means two things.

00:08I am preemptively declaring that I have failed at my New Year's resolution, and it is time

00:14for the Darkness News Update, a series that talks about the news related to sleep and

00:21circadian well-being and conservation and animal welfare and any time lights are on

00:29at night and what that does to the environment.

00:33It is also brought to you by the National Association of Innovative Lighting Distributors and their

00:39Darkness Restoration One program, which I built for them so that lighting distributors could

00:46be ready to support better use of light at night.

00:52Let's get into the news because we have a study from the University of Bergen that has attested

00:57attention and alertness at different times of day under different lighting conditions,

01:03specifically generic white-ish SSL light and straight up blue and red light, still generated

01:11from SSL sources, solid state lighting, LED lighting, and they found that actually both

01:19the blue and red had better results in terms of alertness and attentiveness depending on

01:28the time of day, which backs up studies from the GSA, the US GSA finding that you can augment

01:36existing lighting behind computers with blue or red lighting depending on the time to improve

01:40overall performance just a bit.

01:43UV lighting stimulates the production of neuropsin.

01:48Neuropsin is a chemical in the brains of mammals that is linked to seasonal rhythms, which means

01:54that we can definitely say the amount of daylight available seasonally does have an effect on

02:02us all.

02:02We have a new method of coordinated color temperature testing related to melanopsin and rhodopsin content

02:11as well as behavior.

02:13This is a new way of tracking cone photoreceptor activation under different lighting conditions

02:21that could be used in other studies.

02:24That's really it.

02:25It's just that we have this study that figured out, hey, these are variable CCT LED bulbs,

02:31and this is how we make them work better overall if we're going to keep studying it.

02:38We also have a new hormone study related to light at night.

02:43Kyoto University has identified a possible hormonal level intervention in light sensitivity in the

02:50clock gene, which is to say that you might be able to take a pill every day forever to compensate

02:59for the fact that you work the night shift.

03:03Or you could just have a nice cup of tea.

03:05This is a new study from the Shanghai University of Medicine and Health Sciences that has given

03:10mice tea oils, multiple different types of tea oils, white, black tea, white, black, green,

03:18poo-er, oolong, all the major tea types.

03:22And there was a very convoluted process, but it turns into like the same equivalent of giving

03:28a human seven grams of loose leaf tea steeped in a cup of water a day.

03:33And they found that testing all the varieties, they found that white and black teas can be

03:40used to help you recover from jet lag, depending on which direction you're lagging.

03:47So if you're jumping ahead, you need white tea, and if you're falling back, you need black tea.

03:52And that's cool.

03:55Also, I like tea.

03:56Tea's nice.

03:59We have a new paper from Alexander Williamson pointing out that the circadian stimulus model

04:05doesn't really actually account for commercial LEDs because brand to brand, even product to product,

04:14they vary too much.

04:16And we need to start talking about that much more specifically if we're talking about the

04:21well-being of people who live inside.

04:24Nighttime link has once again been linked with cardiometabolic disease.

04:29This is a study of UK Biobank data that points to links between nighttime light exposure as a

04:35factor in cardiometabolic morbidity.

04:39Multimorbidity.

04:40Multimorbidity.

04:41Not just one morbidity.

04:43All the morbidities.

04:44We also see that circadian disruption has been linked with inflammation,

04:49neutropenic fever, and symptom burden among multiple myeloma patients.

04:55That is a type of cancer that requires stem cell treatment.

04:59And those that receive the stem cell therapy may benefit from circadian lighting solutions

05:05while being treated.

05:08Albedo from snow does affect your circadian rhythm.

05:12This is a very small study from Uppsala, Sweden.

05:16And albedo, I should say, albedo is the reflectivity of the surface so that during the winter, snow

05:24makes light bounce back up.

05:27And what they found is that actually daytime alertness spiked because you have morning sunlight

05:34being amplified to an extra degree because you've got the snow there.

05:38But what's really interesting is that it doesn't have the same effect on nighttime sleep quality,

05:45possibly because they're in Uppsala, Sweden, and sunsets at like four o'clock.

05:51And that really evens it out.

05:53But there you go.

05:55We're also going to move over to the fucking duh news desk to show that you can't catch up on sleep over one weekend.

06:04This is a study that finally checked in with us nighttime chronotypes and found that,

06:10yeah, if you're stuck in a job or a school situation,

06:13it puts you on the early chronotype five days a week,

06:17and then you have two days off to recover, you can't catch up.

06:21It just doesn't work.

06:26If you work off rhythm, you're going to be off rhythm forever.

06:30And the only reason that's fair, fair,

06:34is that all the guys that worked the morning chronotypes

06:38all got together and voted on how we should live our lives

06:41while we were still asleep.

06:44Swiss scientists have determined that you sleep better when you are not stressed.

06:51Okay, this is actually about building better testing conditions

06:55for control groups in sleep studies,

06:57but they did a lot of work,

07:00a lot of very detailed, well-documented work

07:03to figure out that if you stress people out

07:06or pump people's expectations,

07:08they don't sleep so good.

07:10We have a new study of light exposure behavior.

07:15They gave light loggers to people in Switzerland and Malaysia

07:22at the same time.

07:24They took data from an entire month from both countries,

07:27and they found that the Swiss, it turned out,

07:30got more and better daytime light,

07:32and the Malaysians ended up doing more activities at night,

07:37and that affected their individual light intake.

07:42But Malaysia gets more light overall,

07:45so you would think Malaysians would be better circadian-entrained,

07:49but they don't, because it's cultural.

07:52There are cultural factors around how people spend their time getting in light,

07:57and that matters more than geography.

08:03Sol and Seville are on the same point of latitude,

08:06and they experience entirely different lighting patterns,

08:11and that is down to culture.

08:14There we go.

08:15We have an open letter from astronomy researchers

08:18published this week

08:21asking the government of Chile

08:23to protect the Paranel Observatory.

08:28The Paranel Observatory is a system of optical telescopes,

08:35insulate, high in the mountains,

08:37supposedly very isolated,

08:40supposedly super protected,

08:41but they're building a hydrogen fuel processing facility down the road,

08:47and that's going to be too bright,

08:48and it's going to endanger one of the last true great observatories on Earth.

08:54And the researchers would really like it

08:56if the government of Chile fixed that.

09:00It's an ongoing problem,

09:01but they're escalating.

09:04A different group of astronomy researchers

09:07have renewed their objections to low-orbit objects.

09:10This is a new paper talking about

09:12how low-orbit satellites

09:14will actually harm the work being done

09:16by telescopes that are also in orbit.

09:20By 2030,

09:2390% of all photos taken by the Hubble telescope

09:26will have some SpaceX bit of garbage in the frame.

09:32SPHERE-X,

09:33which is also an orbital telescope

09:36mostly focused on infrared observations,

09:39will also have things obstructing it.

09:43Also, there are two new planned projects,

09:47the Chinese Zunchan Orbital Observatory

09:50and the EU's Arrakis Orbital Observatory

09:54that will be dealing with even worse problems

09:57because by the time they're up there,

09:59there will be half a million things in low orbit.

10:03We have a new study that confirms

10:05that European dung beetles

10:07use starlight to navigate.

10:10We already knew this was true of African dung beetles,

10:13but we've seen that European dung beetles,

10:17if in areas where there is not light pollution

10:20and they can see the stars,

10:21they move in straight lines.

10:23But where there is light pollution,

10:25they move in wobbly lines.

10:27And that's probably bad for the beetles.

10:30Probably.

10:32Plan B and the University of Southport

10:35have launched a new survey

10:36on environmental pollution.

10:38This aims to bring people's perceptions

10:41and people's desires to EU policymakers.

10:44In Caprock Canyon, Texas,

10:47it is officially a dark sky park.

10:50This is a state park recognized by Dark Sky International

10:53and it covers 15,000 acres in North Texas.

10:57Dark Sky International has finished their assessment

11:00of Wickenburg, Arizona.

11:01They'll eventually announce

11:04if they pass muster, I guess.

11:06That's just a little status update, I guess.

11:09The Welsh government have issued

11:10a new lighting guidance.

11:13This is a new document

11:14that helps planners and regulators

11:17understand the responsible use

11:18of outdoor light at night.

11:21Light pollution mitigation

11:22has joined the Green Infrastructure Strategy document

11:26in Castilla, La Mancha, Spain.

11:29This means that the municipality

11:32will be beginning new corrective lighting measures.

11:37In Warwickshire in the UK,

11:39they are pushing back on a planned business park

11:42because the warehouses

11:43that they're already building there

11:45are drawing complaints about their lighting.

11:48In Ashford in the UK,

11:51there are already objections

11:52to lighting at a border facility.

11:55This is in Dover.

11:56A ground transportation route

11:59from the EU

11:59and all the shipping

12:01and trucking traffic there

12:02is adding a lot to the lighting

12:04and they'd really like it

12:05if it was better.

12:07In Cumbria in the UK,

12:09they are adding lighting sensors.

12:11This is a new measurement program

12:13started by the Stars for All Foundation

12:15that puts new trackers

12:17that will measure sky glow

12:18minute to minute overnight

12:20in the interest of collecting data

12:23about light pollution

12:24and maybe we can improve on that.

12:26In Kelowna, British Columbia,

12:28they are debating

12:29adding lighting to the Bennett Bridge,

12:32mostly because

12:33it's going to cost

12:34a million dollars Canadian,

12:36but also people are raising concerns

12:38about the wildlife in the area

12:40and, you know,

12:41those things can go together.

12:42Decorative lighting costs money

12:44and it bothers fish.

12:47Teamwork.

12:48Teamwork.

12:48Pennsylvania has set a new set

12:52of data center rules

12:53at the state level.

12:55Local governments

12:56cannot set rules

12:57for data centers

12:58in terms of noise

13:00or light pollution

13:01that are more stringent

13:03than any other business

13:05seeking a zoning variance,

13:07which sounds to me

13:09like a great excuse

13:10to set very stringent

13:12light pollution rules

13:13for all businesses.

13:15or not,

13:19or maybe just the whole state

13:20gets bulldozed

13:21for data centers.

13:22Who knows?

13:23In Mace,

13:24in Mace in Michigan,

13:25they have passed

13:26new lighting rules

13:27for data centers as well.

13:29That will include

13:31lighting standards

13:32as well as noise limits.

13:34In Ispelante, Michigan,

13:35there is a brand new

13:36lighting bylaw.

13:38Any new construction

13:39will have to limit

13:40uplight glare

13:41and trespass,

13:43but existing lamps

13:46can also be made

13:48to follow those same rules

13:50if someone complains

13:52correctly.

13:54In Idaho,

13:56a car,

13:56this is a callback,

13:57this is a callback

13:58to the last episode,

13:59in Bellevue, Idaho,

14:01a car dealership

14:02that is already drawing

14:03complaints

14:04about its bright lighting

14:06and how it's spilling

14:06into the neighborhood,

14:08the owner has responded

14:10to those complaints

14:10and he says that

14:11he is going to build

14:12an eight-foot fence.

14:14He's not going to

14:14turn off the lights,

14:16he's not going to

14:16dim the lights,

14:17he's not going to

14:18change the direction

14:18of the lights,

14:19he's just going to

14:20build a big fence.

14:22In Dexter, Michigan,

14:24we have updates

14:25to lighting ordinances,

14:27we have new rules

14:28for new construction

14:28as well as new

14:29zoning variances.

14:31In Emerson, Georgia,

14:33they have entered

14:33their first debate

14:34over new lighting rules.

14:38The first draft

14:39has been read

14:39by city council

14:40and it has been debated

14:42with the public overall.

14:44In Stallings, Texas,

14:46the mayor is considering

14:47banning pickleball

14:49after dark.

14:51This is mostly related

14:52to the noise complaints

14:53surrounding pickleball,

14:55but he does feel

14:56like the easiest way

14:57to stop those

14:58noise complaints

14:59is just to not add

15:01lighting to any

15:01pickleball courts.

15:03In Summit, New Jersey,

15:05they have set new

15:06baseball field lighting rules.

15:07They will be requiring

15:09timing on all

15:11baseball fields

15:11run by the municipality

15:12and schools

15:14in the district,

15:15but also they will be

15:16setting requirements

15:17for different light levels.

15:20So if you're running

15:20a practice,

15:21you cannot be nearly

15:22as bright as an actual game.

15:24In Florida,

15:26the town of Satellite Beach

15:27has ordered a nativity scene

15:30to be shut down.

15:31This is a project

15:34that lit an entire house

15:37as well as the cars

15:38in the driveway

15:39with projectors

15:41in a scene that I actually

15:43kind of like.

15:43I'm going to say

15:44it's an interesting

15:45take on like Baroque

15:49era stained glass

15:50with a bit of neon

15:51aesthetic as well.

15:53I really like,

15:54like I actually like

15:55how this looks.

15:55I'm not a Christian,

15:57but I like what

15:57they captured here.

15:58But the problem is

16:00is that in Satellite Beach,

16:01Florida,

16:02you can't have

16:03temporary lighting at all.

16:05And if you want

16:06permanent lighting,

16:07it has to be a sign

16:09that's well shielded.

16:10You can't use a projector.

16:11And the owners of this house

16:13have complied,

16:14but they are lobbying

16:16for some sort of change

16:18in the rules

16:18for temporary lighting.

16:21Maybe they get

16:22to turn it back on,

16:24but that might be a year.

16:27I'm just saying

16:27it's a cool project

16:30and it's Christmas

16:31and, you know,

16:32we can make some exceptions.

16:33There's some cap and trade

16:34we can do for lighting

16:35and we don't have

16:37to be buzzkills.

16:38We don't have to be

16:39buzzkills all the time.

16:40I think this looks cool

16:41and I hope they can find

16:43something that makes sense,

16:44even if it's only on

16:45for an hour or two

16:46at night.

16:47We have a brand new,

16:50a brand new

16:52Dark Sky International chapter.

16:54They cut the ribbon

16:55on a new office

16:56in Salida, California.

16:58They are up and running.

16:59They are pushing

16:59for better lighting

17:01in that county.

17:03The U.S. Customs

17:04and Border Patrol

17:05have waived

17:06all environmental rules

17:08on a border jaguar habitat,

17:11which is to say

17:12that any protections

17:13the jaguars need

17:14because they move

17:16across the border

17:18and they would like

17:19to not have,

17:20they probably would not benefit

17:21from a bunch of fencing

17:22and lighting

17:23on the U.S.-Mexico border

17:26in that area.

17:28They're gone.

17:29They're gone.

17:30You know,

17:30people pushed for it.

17:31They tried to carve out

17:32an exception.

17:33They tried to carve out

17:33some sort of

17:35reasonable wildlife corridor.

17:38There are a lot of options

17:39you can build

17:40to let wildlife

17:41pass through

17:42hard infrastructure,

17:44but none of that's

17:45going to happen.

17:46It's just going to be,

17:48the border will continue

17:49to be lit like a prison

17:50and I guess

17:52the jaguars

17:53are the prisoners.

17:54In Exmoor in the U.K.,

17:56they have named

17:57the winners

17:58of the Dark Skies

17:59Children's Competition.

18:01This is a contest

18:03for middle schoolers

18:04to draw a cool mascot

18:05for light pollution mitigation

18:07and, I don't know,

18:09they drew some cool things.

18:10A couple of middle schoolers

18:12got some free telescopes

18:13for drawing a cool thing.

18:15It's nice.

18:16It's nice.

18:16It's a feel-good.

18:17And I will be back

18:20in two weeks.

18:21I hope you can continue

18:22feeling good until then.

18:23I also want to thank

18:24the National Association

18:25of Innovative Lighting

18:26Distributors.

18:27I also want to thank

18:28them for letting me build

18:31Darkness Restoration 1.

18:33And I hope that maybe

18:36you consider a direct donation

18:37to this series

18:39or just a rating

18:40or a review.

18:42I've been Scott Wachter.

18:43Thank you for your time,

18:44your attention.

18:45I'll see you when I see you.

18:47Take care of yourself.

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