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US Streetlights Are Turning Purple


Newly purple streetlights might seem innocuous, but they could affect driver and pedestrian safety

American cities and towns started switching their streetlights from sodium lamps to LEDs about 15 years ago, which changed the color of many nighttime roads from yellowish orange to bright white. This makes the streetlights less expensive, says John D. Bullough, a program director at the Light and Health Research Center, part of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. As for the possible delamination of the lamps’ coating, it could be caused by anything: heat buildup inside the light fixture because of constant operation, vibrations from passing cars or even gravity tugging downward on the phosphor layer, according to Brgoch and Hariyani.

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