As the coronavirus pandemic evolves, so has daily life. When the COVID-19 crisis swept the globe, everything
grounded to a halt
. Travel and social gatherings were canceled and the economy took a turn for the worse. Yet, all this activity is best seen from space.
Recently, scientists have been utilising weather satellites to observe the change in human activity during the pandemic. By detecting one of mankind’s most influential inventions, artificial light, scientists have been able to discover how the world responded to the coronavirus pandemic.
According to
data
from the
Colorado School of Mines
, New York City and Long Island have changed drastically since the pandemic. In the city, lights are dimmed due to restrictions forbidding people to gather in large groups but on the tail of Long Island, where properties are owned by the wealthiest in New York City, the lights are blazing. This is due to the shift in activity from the close, more compact living areas of the city to the more open summer homes of the people in New York City.
Steven Miller, a senior scientist and deputy director of the
CIRA
, describes the research done with satellites as eye-opening. “But the one thing that really sets it apart from other kinds of satellite data is its ability to capture the human dimension – it offers an epiphany of our own existence and coexistence as a part of Earth’s biosphere.”
In addition to research in the U.S., a team researching how China reacted to the pandemic has made fascinating discoveries.
Qian Liu, a doctoral student at
George Mason University in Virginia
, used a satellite to observe the change in light in the city of Wuhan along with her fellow researchers.
Their
data
showed that commercial areas were dimmed while residential areas brightened due to quarantine restrictions enforced by Chinese officials. Qian Liu says, “In China, people’s commercial areas and living areas are separate.”
Lights are also managed in different ways across the globe. Journalist Marina Koren writes how districts in Spain turned off lights to
save energy
in public places during the pandemic. Italy also implemented a
nationwide experiment
for Italian researchers to acquire data for light pollution levels in Italy.
Countries also brightened up in memoriam for coronavirus workers. Countries like the U.S. introduced
blue lights
to commemorate the sacrifices of coronavirus workers. Landmarks across the world also utilised lights to support coronavirus workers in places such as the
Great Pyramids at Giza
or
Matterhorn Mountain
in Switzerland.
Even if the world has grown darker, there is still light to look ahead.
grounded to a halt
. Travel and social gatherings were canceled and the economy took a turn for the worse. Yet, all this activity is best seen from space.
Recently, scientists have been utilising weather satellites to observe the change in human activity during the pandemic. By detecting one of mankind’s most influential inventions, artificial light, scientists have been able to discover how the world responded to the coronavirus pandemic.
According to
data
from the
Colorado School of Mines
, New York City and Long Island have changed drastically since the pandemic. In the city, lights are dimmed due to restrictions forbidding people to gather in large groups but on the tail of Long Island, where properties are owned by the wealthiest in New York City, the lights are blazing. This is due to the shift in activity from the close, more compact living areas of the city to the more open summer homes of the people in New York City.
Steven Miller, a senior scientist and deputy director of the
CIRA
, describes the research done with satellites as eye-opening. “But the one thing that really sets it apart from other kinds of satellite data is its ability to capture the human dimension – it offers an epiphany of our own existence and coexistence as a part of Earth’s biosphere.”
In addition to research in the U.S., a team researching how China reacted to the pandemic has made fascinating discoveries.
Qian Liu, a doctoral student at
George Mason University in Virginia
, used a satellite to observe the change in light in the city of Wuhan along with her fellow researchers.
Their
data
showed that commercial areas were dimmed while residential areas brightened due to quarantine restrictions enforced by Chinese officials. Qian Liu says, “In China, people’s commercial areas and living areas are separate.”
Lights are also managed in different ways across the globe. Journalist Marina Koren writes how districts in Spain turned off lights to
save energy
in public places during the pandemic. Italy also implemented a
nationwide experiment
for Italian researchers to acquire data for light pollution levels in Italy.
Countries also brightened up in memoriam for coronavirus workers. Countries like the U.S. introduced
blue lights
to commemorate the sacrifices of coronavirus workers. Landmarks across the world also utilised lights to support coronavirus workers in places such as the
Great Pyramids at Giza
or
Matterhorn Mountain
in Switzerland.
Even if the world has grown darker, there is still light to look ahead.
