A remote sensing campaign was performed in September 2001 at night-time under clear-sky conditions before the moonrise in order to assess the level of light pollution due to cities and industries. Two hyperspectral sensors, namely the MIVIS and the VIRS-200, which provide a spectral coverage from the visible up to the thermal infrared, were flown over the Tuscany coast (Italy) on board of a Casa 212 airplane. The acquired images were pre-processed in order to obtain radiometrically calibrated data, which were analysed and compared with ground-based spectral measurements. Calibrated data acquired at high spectral resolution (about 2.5 nm) showed a maximum scene brightness of the same order of magnitude as that observed during similar day-time measurements, while their average luminosity was three orders of magnitude lower. The measurement analysis confirmed that artificial illumination hinders astronomical observations and produces noticeable effects even at great distance from the sources of the illumination.
Effects of Light Pollution Revealed During a Nocturne Aerial Survey by Two Hyperspectral Imagers
Pippi I;Poggesi M
2003
Abstract
A remote sensing campaign was performed in September 2001 at night-time under clear-sky conditions before the moonrise in order to assess the level of light pollution due to cities and industries. Two hyperspectral sensors, namely the MIVIS and the VIRS-200, which provide a spectral coverage from the visible up to the thermal infrared, were flown over the Tuscany coast (Italy) on board of a Casa 212 airplane. The acquired images were pre-processed in order to obtain radiometrically calibrated data, which were analysed and compared with ground-based spectral measurements. Calibrated data acquired at high spectral resolution (about 2.5 nm) showed a maximum scene brightness of the same order of magnitude as that observed during similar day-time measurements, while their average luminosity was three orders of magnitude lower. The measurement analysis confirmed that artificial illumination hinders astronomical observations and produces noticeable effects even at great distance from the sources of the illumination.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
