The world at night

[Red Celt]

I love images like this. It says a lot about the human-activity on the planet. Not so much a way of highlighting population centres, as highlighting population centres with large amounts of electricity to burn.

[Twoflower]

When flying from Detroit to my hometown in Northern Michigan I always enjoy flying at night because of how quickly the landscape changes from well lit city to pitch black farm land and forests.

[Red Celt]

Just look at Egypt... an entire country on the banks of the Nile. Same now as it's always been.

[klr]

Wow ... there's a lot of light in the West of Australia, well away from the coast. I wonder if they are mining operations or some other low-density settlements?

[charlou]

Wow ... there's a lot of light in the West of Australia, well away from the coast. I wonder if they are mining operations or some other low-density settlements?

That light makes the authenticity of the images questionable, actually.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Wow ... there's a lot of light in the West of Australia, well away from the coast. I wonder if they are mining operations or some other low-density settlements?

That light makes the authenticity of the images questionable, actually.

Or it's somebody's idea of a joke.

[pErvinalia]

Wow ... there's a lot of light in the West of Australia, well away from the coast. I wonder if they are mining operations or some other low-density settlements?

That light makes the authenticity of the images questionable, actually.

Yeah, that's got to be a fuck up. That part of Australia is as dark as you will find anywhere on the planet.

[Faithfree]

Wow ... there's a lot of light in the West of Australia, well away from the coast. I wonder if they are mining operations or some other low-density settlements?

That light makes the authenticity of the images questionable, actually.

Yeah, that's got to be a fuck up. That part of Australia is as dark as you will find anywhere on the planet.

I agree that most of those lights do not correspond to either areas of mining activity or any significant population centres. One possible explanation (assuming the image is produced by real light recordings) is a series of spinifex (grass) fires ignited by thunderstorms. The crude NW-SE orientation of the belt of lights corresponds to the typical movement of storm-bearing tropical depressions over that part of the country during summer. I have flown over that part of the country at night when it's been alight and individual fires can easily produce the light of a city. Images like that are composites of light data from many night passes, so it might be a composite of separate fires on separate dates.

[Faithfree]

Wow ... there's a lot of light in the West of Australia, well away from the coast. I wonder if they are mining operations or some other low-density settlements?

That light makes the authenticity of the images questionable, actually.

Yeah, that's got to be a fuck up. That part of Australia is as dark as you will find anywhere on the planet.

I agree that most of those lights do not correspond to either areas of mining activity or any significant population centres. One possible explanation (assuming the image is produced by real light recordings) is a series of spinifex (grass) fires ignited by thunderstorms. The crude NW-SE orientation of the belt of lights corresponds to the typical movement of storm-bearing tropical depressions over that part of the country during summer. I have flown over that part of the country at night when it's been alight and individual fires can easily produce the light of a city. Images like that are composites of light data from many night passes, so it might be a composite of separate fires on separate dates.

Ok, a bit of googling confirms the bushfire hypothesis:
http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/technolog ... 6533311906
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/NPP/n ... fires.html

[pErvinalia]

wow! That's impressive then.

[MiM]

Hmm, there is a lot of light in northern Finland (Lapland) that I also find unbelievable...

[pErvinalia]

That's reflection off polar bears..

[Gawdzilla Sama]

That's reflection off polar bears..

Or glaciers.

[Red Celt]

That's reflection off polar bears..

I was betting on the fairy lights of Santa Claus, myself.

[charlou]

wow! That's impressive then.

Really quite interesting.

And it does rather upend the premise of the op .. although, tbf, the word burn was used.