A former Iowa State student is taking a stand on light pollution in the City of Ames.

David Oesper is an amateur astronomer who is concerned about the amount of light being wasted by standard streetlights.

Lee Ann Wilson, a professor of astronomy, said the problem of light pollution, which is the light scattered in the sky from city lights, makes it difficult to see the sky.

Oesper’s solution is the Skycap, a reflector that replaces the lens of standard streetlights and security lights. The Skycap provides full-cutoff lighting, which means that all of the light is focused downward.

“We want lighting along streets, sidewalks and in farmyards but not light going up into the sky where it is wasted,” Oesper said.

Oesper’s business, Outdoor Lighting Associates, is a retailer that sells a modified version of the Skycap to the City of Ames.

On a completely dark night, in perfect weather conditions, thousands of stars are visible to the naked eye. However, in Ames, it is usually only possible to see a few dozen stars, he said.

This is a large problem for many students in the astronomy department, Wilson said.

Her classes frequently involve required observational labs, which are held on the roof of Physics Hall. These classes are unable to fully view the night sky, she said, because the class is restricted from moving somewhere off-campus due to its large size.

Wilson said there have been improvements in the amount of light emitted into the sky, due largely to efforts of people like Oesper.

A new campus lighting policy has increased the number of lights around campus that use full-cutoff lights, Wilson said. Although the campus itself is lit better than it once was, the glow from the campus into the sky is actually decreasing, she said.

Oesper said there are 2,000 street lights in Ames that can be refitted with the Skycap, but so far only 150 have been changed.

However, Oesper said citizens can ask for the lights to be changed.

Ames residences can call the Ames Municipal Electric System at 239-5206 to have a light within 100 feet of their property serviced with full-cutoff coverings, he said.