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I was lucky enough to grow up in remote places with few anthropogenic sounds. In other words, there weren't any sounds of cars, machines, electrical transformers, airplanes, etc. I grew up in dark sky zones where I could readily identify all sorts of constellations and see the glaucous spray of the Milky Way. I didn't realize what I had until I no longer had it.

The last time I had an incredible view of the Milky Way was when I was in the Amazon jungle about ten years ago. It was glorious.

Where I live now is in the most densely-populated region of Canada, and I'm lucky if I can make out the stars of the Big Dipper or the belt of Orion, and even then, I can't see them from my yard. I have to walk out into the woods, and the light pollution still makes it a challenge.

There aren't many places in the region where I can be free of anthropogenic sound. I found a couple of hiking trails where, if I'm lucky, I might not hear it for a few minutes at best.

I feel sorry for the birds who get lost because of light pollution while migrating. I feel the stress of the constant racket of humans. In a few mythologies, the reason there was a great flood was because god couldn't stand all the racket people were making. I kinda get it.
#AnthropogenicSound #NoisePollution #LightPollution #Habitat #stars #MilkyWay #DarkSky