Three-quarters of the world's observatories are affected by light pollution, according to a fuzzy telescope.

 A recent study suggests that another significant obstacle stands in their way, in addition to the mounting challenges posed by climate change and foggy weather at astronomical observatories. The majority of observatories' skies are being contaminated by light, according to researchers, which interferes with accurate observations.

Researchers from Italy, Chile, and Galicia analysed and compared the levels of light pollution at significant astronomical observatories, and their findings demonstrated the urgent need for action to reduce the pollution caused by artificial light. Over 50 observatories around the world have more light pollution now.

Light pollution at astronomical observatories is one of the key considerations to be made to protect their scientific productivity and their usable lives, according to the study's findings, which have been published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Researchers adapted a model of light transmission in the atmosphere of the Earth to data from nighttime satellites. Additional light pollution measures, in addition to the conventional brightness directly overhead, showed that the night sky at significant observatory sites is more contaminated than one might anticipate.

"One of the characteristics used to categorise the study sites is the zenith, which is often the less polluted and thus darker region of the night sky. The additional indicators include the average brightness at 30 degrees above the horizon, the average brightness at 10 degrees above the horizon, the average brightness across the entire sky, and the amount of artificial light that illuminates the ground. These clues, together with the brightness of the sky above, helps in understanding how artificial light impacts the night sky "scientists claimed.

The findings demonstrated that light pollution, or the modification of natural lighting levels in the nighttime environment as a result of human activities, is rapidly spreading throughout the world and that two-thirds of all major observatories have already surpassed the critical threshold of a 10% increase in radiance over the assumed natural levels.

The zenith sky brightness at seven of the 28 major astronomical observatory locations is less than 1% of natural sky brightness, which is the estimated threshold for light pollution. Three-quarters of the major observatories, or the remaining 21 other significant sites, are all above this elevation.

The lodge in Namibia that houses numerous telescopes that are rented out to amateurs for visual, photographic, and research usage is the least contaminated of all the study's sites. I recently visited, and I can attest that it is the location with the least amount of light pollution I've ever seen. To safeguard the future of ground-based astronomy, Dr. Fabio Falchi, the paper's principal author, said that we must work to reduce the amounts of light pollution at other locations.