Japan prefecture bans searchlights, lasers to save starry nights

Kyodo -- Dec 22

A western Japan prefecture which has been promoting its starry nights to tourists has enacted an ordinance to preserve the views and pass them onto the next generation.

The new rules, which ban the use of searchlights and laser beams in principle, are the first set by a Japanese prefecture to specifically conserve starry sky, according to the Tottori prefectural government.

The ordinance was enacted on Thursday and is scheduled to take effect next April.

The prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast has launched a "Catch the Star" campaign to attract tourists, saying the Milky Way is visible from any part of Tottori and that a shooting star can be seen even when a meteor shower is not taking place.