Night Lights

The first cluster of night lights is found in the Southeastern United States. This cluster of night lights is highly concentrated in the Northern hemisphere, between the approximate latitude and longitude of 41°N, 70°W, extending down to 29°N, 98°W. There are also several different subpatterns identifiable within this cluster. Firstly, concentrated radial patterns can be seen throughout the whole cluster, with Atlanta (at 33°45′N, 84°23′W) and Chicago (at 41°52′N , 87°38′W) showing the strongest effect. Secondly, there is also an observable grid pattern throughout the whole cluster, with the effect being the strongest in the Northern parts of this cluster. These first two patterns are the most common within this cluster, as they are consistently observed across it, likely because this part of the US may have a high urban city/town count. There are also two observable linear patterns, which can be considered as inconsistent anomalies within the main cluster, located between Jacksonville (30°20’N, 81°39'W) and Miami (25°46’N, 80°11’W), and Washington (38°53’N, 77°02’W) and Hartford (41°46’N, 72°40’W). And outside the cluster, it can also be noted that around Mexico City (19°25’N, 99°05’W), a radial pattern, which is Southwest of the main cluster, as well as with the cities of Los Angeles (34°N, 118°15’W) and San Francisco (37°45’N, 122°25’W), a linear radial pattern, which is West of the cluster, can be considered as outliers, as they are highly concentrated, but far away from the main cluster. Now, it should be noted that the data, the cluster, and the observable subpatterns on the right are from nighttime satellite images in 2016, meaning we may see a completely different image today (which is incredibly likely). This means we can expect this cluster (as well as other clusters) and its subpatterns to change, with changes that may include radial patterns widening, the grid brightening, the outliers becoming brighter or dimmer, and irregular patterns within the cluster becoming more uniform, for example. And compared to our next pattern, this cluster is perhaps more concentrated than the second cluster in Europe.