Advancing Scientific Research

The Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division (NSNSD) strives to be a leader in the scientific advancement of our understanding and management of the acoustic and photic environments. We partner with scientific institutions to harness our collective resources, knowledge, skills, and commitment so we can better understand, manage, and work towards finding and implementing solutions to our conservation challenges. Some of these institutions and the projects we are collaborating on are highlighted below. By advancing scientific research in the field of light pollution and its impacts on the human environment and natural world, we can better protect our natural night skies for present and future generations and for the nocturnal environment.

The National Park Service (NPS) prioritizes visitor enjoyment of the parks, ensuring that recreational activities and other uses align with the protection of the park’s resources and values. To enhance this experience, the NSNSD is collaborating with Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) to explore how visitors perceive light in a natural park setting. This research focuses on understanding human preferences for light range, intensity, and color, recognizing that the way people perceive lighting in natural areas can differ significantly from the built environment. The study also emphasizes best lighting practices, which involve using lighting specifications that minimize impact on the natural environment while enhancing visitor experience, ensuring that both human enjoyment and ecological protection are maintained.

One specific study Used a natural arboretum on Penn State’s Campus. Customized pathway lights were installed along a winding pathway. The lights used met requirements of NPS best practices for parks, which included no up-light emission, controlled light distribution with no backlight, warm white to amber color options, and dimmable light intensity. Participants were asked to express preferences of light color and intensity as they walked through the pathway. Light color and intensity were randomly varied across six stations throughout the experiment. A seventh station allow participants to choose their preferred lighting level and color. Participants indicated a significant preference for amber light compared to white light, as well as a preference for lighting intensity at lower levels than previously noted in the existing literature. These results can help inform park management and procurement actions to consider the use of lights with warmer color and at lower intensities than are often found in the built environment.

The NSNSD has also partnered with Boise State University to investigate the relationship between outdoor lighting, wildlife response to light, and park visitor perceptions about lighting. In collaboration between Grand Teton National Park, Acadia National Park (pictured below), NSNSD, and Boise State, the research team has used a series experimental lights using customized lighting fixtures which allow researchers to alter color (amber, red, and white) as well as intensity for set periods of time to determine wildlife response and assess visitor reactions. Specifically, these custom lighting fixtures use direct amber, phosphor coated (PC) amber, direct red, and broadband white LED lighting systems in a single housing. These options represent very diverse compositions of light which are expected to have equally diverse impacts on wildlife response and human perception. These lighting experiments build on previous work with Boise State and NSNSD at Grand Teton National Park at Colter Bay, the largest visitor use area in the park. At Colter Bay’s main parking area, BSU researchers and NPS staff installed 34 custom streetlights fitted with both traditional white light and near monochromatic red light to investigate the impact narrow-band light would have on insect and bat attraction, as well as assess visitor perceptions of these novel lights.

Preliminary results of this study indicate a dramatic decrease in insect activity around the red lights with a corresponding decrease in bat activity in the area. Visitors to the area responded favorably to the lights and indicated support for NPS actions to protect wildlife and night sky quality in Grand Teton National Park. These studies will provide NPS with important insight into the impacts of lighting practice and will help inform best practices for outdoor lighting in sensitive areas where protecting natural resources is imperative.

The collaboration between Utah State University (USU) and the NSNSD was established to enhance the understanding and management of night sky recreation in Utah public lands, including NPS units. A goal of the study was to develop a foundational understanding of night sky recreationists—visitors who engage in activities dependent on naturally dark night skies. These activities include wildlife observation at night, night sky viewing/astronomy, and night sky photography. The study successfully identified who these recreationists are, their preferences for park management, and their spending behaviors compared to other outdoor recreationists. The data was collected through surveys conducted with evening visitors at four state parks and five National Park Service units in Utah. The project gathered over 700 surveys with comprehensive information on visitors' engagement in night sky recreation activities, their preferences for night sky management, and their spending profiles during their trips. The collaboration between USU and the NPS leverages academic expertise and practical management experience to address emerging trends in outdoor recreation. In summary, the research project underscores the importance of understanding and managing night sky recreation within NPS and Utah’s parks and monuments, as well as other protected areas in the USA. The collaboration between Utah State University and the National Park Service highlights a proactive approach to enhancing visitor experiences while safeguarding natural night sky environments.

Key Findings (Take aways) of this project:

1. Participation in Night Sky Recreation:
   • A significant proportion (61.8%) of evening visitors participated in night sky recreation activities during their visit.
   • Night sky recreationists tend to take longer overnight trips compared to other outdoor recreationists.
2. Support for Dark Sky Management:
   • There was strong support among visitors for dark sky-related management actions. Between 85-90% of all respondents supported six out of seven proposed management actions. The last action still garnered 74% of support with an additional 17% neither opposed nor supportive of the actions .
   • Night sky dependent recreationists showed greater support for specific actions, such as minimizing artificial light brightness, compared to other recreationists.
3. Spending Profiles:
   • Night sky recreationists did not exhibit significantly different spending patterns compared to other evening recreationists.
   • The activities involved in night sky recreation often incur minimal costs, reflecting similar spending behaviors across all types of recreationists.

National Park Foundation has funded a three-year collaboration between Boise State University, Penn State University, and the National Park Service (NPS) on the research project "Reducing the Impacts of Light Pollution on Wildlife and Visitor Experiences in Acadia, Great Smoky Mountains, and Grand Teton National Parks." This project represents a multidisciplinary effort to address the ecological and experiential impacts of light pollution. The project aims to mitigate the ecological and experiential impacts of artificial light at night in three national parks: Grand Teton (GRTE), Acadia (ACAD), and Great Smoky Mountains (GRSM). These parks were chosen due to their status as some of the darkest parks in the NPS system, representing different regions, ecosystems, and visitor patterns. The overall purpose is to reduce the negative effects of light pollution on wildlife, particularly bats and insects, while enhancing visitor experiences by maintaining dark night skies and demonstrating the benefits of wildlife-friendly lighting. The project spans three years and includes research on wildlife responses to different lightscapes and visitor experiences and perceptions of parks natural night skies. Using the information gained through this and other research, the existing light fixture and bulbs will be replaced with energy-saving LED alternatives designed to reduce light pollution and its effects. The collaboration between Boise State University, Penn State University, and the NPS combines academic research expertise with NPS management experience to achieve the more informed management practices and promote conservation of night sky resources through visitor education and engagement, fostering a deeper connection between people and natural night skies. In summary, this collaborative research project seeks to balance the needs of wildlife conservation with enhancing visitor experiences in national parks, demonstrating the broader benefits of reducing light pollution in natural environments.

For more information on NSNSD Research, please visit the NSNSD Google Scholar page.

To learn more about other partnership collaborative work NSNSD is involved in, please visit our Partnerships page.