Light pollution and overnight lighting have had measurable impacts on fauna across the world, from sea turtle nesting to the migration patterns of birds. A new study from the United Kingdom has shed some light on how unnatural illumination is affecting the world’s plants as well. 

In data gathered from 1999 to 2011, a number of tree species exposed to artificial lighting were found to bud five to seven days earlier than their counterparts not exposed to artificial lights.

When baby sea turtles hatch, their first instinct is to head toward the moonlight reflecting on the water’s surface — a natural waypoint that leads them to the sea. Hatchlings are drawn to the brightest thing they see, and in developed areas the brightest thing is no longer the moon, but the street and hotel lights.

This disorients the baby turtles and leads many of them away from the ocean, causing dehydration, starvation, and an increased chance of getting eaten. 

Mauna Kea is one of the most important locations in the astronomy world. Located on the main island of Hawaii, Mauna Kea is a million-year-old dormant volcano. With its peak reaching 13,803 feet above sea level, Mauna Kea is the world’s tallest volcano, making it the perfect spot to host some of the greatest telescope and astronomical observatories ever created.