Light Pollution Is No Match for the Milky Way in These Stunning Timelapses

City lights might be magnificent, but they're dim in comparison to the Milky Way. Living in LA, filmmakers Gavin Heffernan and Harun Mehmedinovic found themselves needing a break from the daily grind in their urban environment, so they drove out to remote locations in the desert to capture timelapses of the night sky. As the massive starscapes above refreshed their eyes, they began to wonder: what would a sky without stars look like?

“We assumed that others were probably suffering from this severed connection to the universe, so we began learning more about light pollution (skyglow) and what could be done to stop it,” they tell The Creators Project. The duo recently launched a Kickstarter for The Skyglow Project, an initiative to raise the awareness of the negative effects of city lighting. By remixing astrophotography with aerial shots of LA, they wanted to showcase the views people were missing out on—and hopefully, get them inspired.

SKYGLOW from Sunchaser Pictures on Vimeo.

Heffernan and Mehmedinovic want to preserve this “incredible vanishing resource before it's too late,” and to educate the public on how to protect the night sky for future generations to enjoy. Their project launch coincides with International Dark Sky Week 2015 (April 13–18), a week of events endorsed by International Dark-Sky Association, Sky & Telescope, and the American Astronomical Society to examine the impact of light pollution.

Below, see Heffernan and Mehmedinovic’s stunning timelapse photography, and head over to their Kickstarter to learn more about the importance of preserving dark skies:

Related:

Watch the Stars Cascade Over Canyons in this Swirling Night Sky Timelapse

Stargaze at a Rare Aurora Borealis in Virtual Reality

The Night Sky Captured With A Fish Eye Lens Turns Into A Stunning Starry Globe