Night Sky Brightness and Light Pollution in Comunidad de Madrid

Abstract

Preliminary results of a study of the night sky background brightness around the city of Madrid using Sky Quality Meter (SQM) photometers are presented. Data-retrieval methodology includes an automatic procedure to measure from a moving vehicle which allows to speed up the data gathering. The night sky brightness, an astronomical quality parameter that accounts for luminous flux from the sky, is closely related with the light pollution. The map with the spatial distribution of the night sky brightness around Madrid has been compared to the light pollution as measured with calibrated satellite imagery and nocturnal images taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS).