Satellite data shows Earth is getting ever brighter at night

Daily satellite observations have revealed a ​continued nighttime brightening globally due to artificial lighting, with important regional variations including a surge in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia alongside a ‌deliberate dimming in Europe driven by concerns over energy conservation and light pollution.

Researchers documented a 16% ​net increase in global nighttime light from 2014 to 2022, but showed it was not a steady brightening ⁠but rather a patchwork of increasing and decreasing regional brightness shaped by numerous factors. The United States in 2022 had by far the highest total luminosity of any country, followed by China, India, Canada and Brazil.