Every few months I look at the light pollution heat map and every time it's worse. Just look at Thailand compared to Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos. 

 

When I first came here 20+ years ago I lived up-country and at night the sky was pitch black and you could hardly put a pin between the millions of visible stars. Then we got street lighting on the nearby main road and village lamplights. Those together with the massive increase in light from the nearby town have all but obliterated this sight. 

 

Progress I guess but so sad. As a great philosopher once said, "You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone".

 

 

31 minutes ago, Baht Simpson said:

Just look at Thailand compared to Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos

It's the population, more dense 

You're going to get more light pollution heat

Look at HCMC 

1 minute ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

It the population, more dense 

 

Look at HCMC 

Yes, I understand why. Just saddened by the fact.

When I was 20 I came to Thailand and had booked a tour - 3 day raft trip from Chaing Rai, Golden Triangle and night at hill tribe. I remember getting up one night on the raft and had never seen anything like the amount of stars in the night sky. I can see why so many were inspired .. where I am in Australia is not too bad .. need to get a bit further away 

What the sky should look like.

 

 

1 minute ago, Fat is a type of crazy said:

When I was 20 I came to Thailand and had booked a tour - 3 day raft trip from Chaing Rai, Golden Triangle and night at hill tribe. I remember getting up one night on the raft and had never seen anything like the amount of stars in the night sky. I can see why so many were inspired .. where I am in Australia is not too bad .. need to get a bit further away 

I had a similar experience going to one of the Similan Islands. There was electricity for showers from a generator for only one hour before sundown. 

 

At night we would go down to the shore holding candles and sit on the beach marveling at the firmament. The number of stars was mesmerizing. 

 

I know they close the island down for the marine life every few years so hopefully it hasn't changed much. King Bhumipol had a place there.

Honestly.

Light pollution. 

Get a life.

Or go out in the middle of the north sea or the like and look up , it's all still there. 

"Light pollution"? 

Really?

The days must just fly by man.

3 minutes ago, quake said:

Honestly.

Light pollution. 

Get a life.

Or go out in the middle of the north sea or the like and look up , it's all still there. 

“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan.  ❤️

 

2 minutes ago, Baht Simpson said:

“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan.  ❤️

 

 Ha Ha.

But the eyes are in space now days.

Far more brighter than our own. 

The pictures are great. 

Between my teaching stints in Myanmar I spend time in Luang Prabang (north Laos).  You'd think it would be a great place for star-gazing, but sadly there are always too many low clouds.  I gave my 10cm telescope to a friend....

 

Myanmar is better, no light pollution 'cos there's no electricity......

11 minutes ago, simon43 said:

Between my teaching stints in Myanmar I spend time in Luang Prabang (north Laos).  You'd think it would be a great place for star-gazing, but sadly there are always too many low clouds.  I gave my 10cm telescope to a friend....

 

Myanmar is better, no light pollution 'cos there's no electricity......

The best skywatching here was December to March but the smoke haze has mostly put paid to that.

18 minutes ago, quake said:

 Ha Ha.

But the eyes are in space now days.

Far more brighter than our own. 

The pictures are great. 

They are, but remember they're enhanced to a greater or lesser extent.

1 hour ago, Baht Simpson said:

Every few months I look at the light pollution heat map and every time it's worse. Just look at Thailand compared to Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos. 

 

It is due to the new SCOURGE....Solar-powered Outdoor Lighting.

Turning Night into Day.

 

There is NO HOPE FOR MANKIND, obviously...

 

 

Just this past year, 4 of my neighbors have purchased very bright solar-powered outdoor lightning.

 

The color temperature is HORRENDOUS.

 

This destroys the ambiance of the neighborhood, if there ever WERE an ambiance to begin with, that is.

 

Also, there is NO POINT going out at night for a stroll, if it means being assaulted by those PRISON-COMPOUND lights which are going up almost everywhere.

 

4 neighbors in just one year.

 

Next year it will be 10....

 

Because, where there are humans involved....

It's always monkey see....

Monkey Do.

 

Bunch of NITWITS....most humans.....

 

 

3 hours ago, simon43 said:

I gave my 10cm telescope to a friend....

 

Must be a refractor.

15 minutes ago, GammaGlobulin said:

Just this past year, 4 of my neighbors have purchased very bright solar-powered outdoor lightning.

 

The color temperature is HORRENDOUS.

 

This destroys the ambiance of the neighborhood, if there ever WERE an ambiance to begin with, that is.

 

Also, there is NO POINT going out at night for a stroll, if it means being assaulted by those PRISON-COMPOUND lights which are going up almost everywhere.

 

4 neighbors in just one year.

 

Next year it will be 10....

 

Because, where there are humans involved....

It's always monkey see....

Monkey Do.

 

Bunch of NITWITS....most humans.....

 

 

Thais don't do ambient lighting. A harsh fluorescent light is always favoured, at least out here in the sticks.

19 minutes ago, Baht Simpson said:

Thais don't do ambient lighting. A harsh fluorescent light is always favoured, at least out here in the sticks.

 

Then, there is no point in any of them travelling to Paris, presumably...

3 hours ago, Baht Simpson said:

They are, but remember they're enhanced to a greater or lesser extent.

Well, if it's from the James Webb space telescope, then every image is enhanced, since radio waves have no colour 🙂

On 9/25/2025 at 8:53 PM, simon43 said:

Between my teaching stints in Myanmar I spend time in Luang Prabang (north Laos).  You'd think it would be a great place for star-gazing, but sadly there are always too many low clouds.  I gave my 10cm telescope to a friend....

 

Myanmar is better, no light pollution 'cos there's no electricity......

Plenty of electricity when I lived there. Not many outages either.

But plenty of pollution except in the rainy season.

I loved getting up at 5 a.m. in Bangkok with my tomcat and we would both sit on the porch while I sipped a coffee, looking out at the yard and alley. A beautiful way to start the day. Then the city installed a new LED street light and it floods our yard with the harshest light imaginable. I'm guessing the lights were meant for four-lane roads, but we just have a one-lane alley.

I really miss sitting out there. The cat just runs off to better shade, and I'm squinting and getting agitated under the bright lights and so give up and go inside.

 

I speak to other Thais on the street and they absolutely do not understand the problem, plus they sleep late. I get the impression they'd prefer every dark space completely illuminated.

On 9/25/2025 at 12:29 PM, Baht Simpson said:

What the sky should look like.

 

 

You would be lucky to experience that in Thailand at all, at any season, but Im been lucky to live places It did almost look like this just by the naked eye. Not to forget Northern light as well

4 minutes ago, davb said:

I loved getting up at 5 a.m. in Bangkok with my tomcat and we would both sit on the porch while I sipped a coffee, looking out at the yard and alley. A beautiful way to start the day. Then the city installed a new LED street light and it floods our yard with the harshest light imaginable. I'm guessing the lights were meant for four-lane roads, but we just have a one-lane alley.

I really miss sitting out there. The cat just runs off to better shade, and I'm squinting and getting agitated under the bright lights and so give up and go inside.

 

I speak to other Thais on the street and they absolutely do not understand the problem, plus they sleep late. I get the impression they'd prefer every dark space completely illuminated.

Need to get out of the city to Isaan, but now they also put up solar powered led lights everywhere, even out in nowhere where we live. The concrete roads and lead lights comes closer for every year, still we have the National park behinds us. 

1 hour ago, Hummin said:

You would be lucky to experience that in Thailand at all, at any season, but Im been lucky to live places It did almost look like this just by the naked eye. Not to forget Northern light as well

Now, definitely, unless you went to the Similan Islands or similar.