Mooney: Let’s restore the night sky

The stars in the night sky around town still look good. Denver friends are amazed at what we can see; their own light pollution is horrible. Having worked in an industrial, hot-glass shop, I learned a lot about glass and what can be done with it.

The historic street lights with the glass bulbs need a one-time fix. Remove and invert the glass, mask the inside where the widest diameter is to keep most of the glass transparent, then paint the top of the bulb with an off-white paint and a bit of green. For maximum reflection I’d add colored aluminum foil available in gold or copper with a thickness of .0025 inch, take the masking off and re-install the glass covering.

The goal is to restore the historic night sky.

Tom Mooney

Aspen