On a clear, dark night, the sky lights up with millions of stars, the brightest of which form a glowing band from one horizon to the other. That band is the tiny slice of our galaxy, the Milky Way, that can be seen from Earth. Unfortunately, a 2016 study found that in a whopping 80 percent of North America and 60 percent of Europe, you can't see the Milky Way at all because of the light pollution. This isn't just a shame for stargazers; it's a real hazard for the natural world. Artificial light can disrupt bird migration, alter the behavior of insects, and mess with plants' seasonal cycles.
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