Purple Streetlights: A Growing Mystery Across the Globe

For 15 years, American cities have been swapping sodium lamps for energy-efficient LEDs, changing nighttime roads from orange to bright white. But recently, a strange purple hue has been appearing in streetlights across the US and globally. Scientists hypothesize that this is due to delamination of the phosphor layer coating the blue LEDs, revealing the underlying blue light and resulting in the purple tint. This isn't just unsettling; it's a potential safety hazard, as the blue-rich light alters how drivers and pedestrians perceive their surroundings, impairing detail vision at night. Experts recommend removing sunglasses and blue-light-filtering glasses at night to maximize light intake.