Light Pollution with a Serenade

I've been holding out for the skies to clear tonight, but no luck - the cloud that has been an almost constant companion this week is holding on.

Lack of clear skies does give me the chance to highlight the ridiculous and the sublime tonight though; as I took this shot of the sky to the north, my mind wandered to what this view would have looked like without the lights from Lyttelton Harbour on the other side of the hills and Christchurch beyond. Light pollution is a scourge of our age - the urbanisation of the world's population and their need for lit, secure streets, has meant that we live in a world 90% of all people are affected by its glowing grip. It's no wonder that many of us that reside in cities have never seen the stars.

I know the feeling this week - I wish this cloud would lift! Frustrated as I may have been, the haunting call of a Morepork closeby soothed my soul as I shot this view looking north.