ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Polarized light pollution

Okay kiddo, have you ever worn sunglasses? They make everything look darker and not as bright, right? That's because sunglasses have a special filter in them called polarized lenses. This filter only lets light that is going in one direction pass through and blocks out any light that is going in a different direction.

Now imagine if there were a lot of bright lights outside at night, like streetlights or car headlights. Sometimes these lights can be too bright and keep us from seeing the stars in the sky. That's called light pollution.

But what if we could use those same polarized lenses in our sunglasses to help reduce light pollution at night? Scientists have found a way to do just that! They've created special filters that only let light that is going in certain directions through, and they're using these filters to make outdoor lights that won't shine in all directions and make the sky too bright.

So, polarized light pollution is when we use special filters to help reduce the amount of light that gets into the sky at night, making it easier for us to see stars, just like how polarized lenses help us see clearly on a bright day.