Light pollution hasn’t really changed (though it does increase in December every year)
What has changed is a social phenomenon of people taking photos of ordinary stuff, such as planets, stars, or commercial aircraft, posting it to social media, and telling others that it’s nefarious drones. This creates social contagion of the idea and action, as others do the same.
Since “mysterious object in sky” gets a lot more social media engagement than “Here’s a not-very-good photo of Jupiter” the whole thing spreads.
Light pollution is so bad people are unaccustomed to seeing lights in the skies
Light pollution hasn’t really changed (though it does increase in December every year)
What has changed is a social phenomenon of people taking photos of ordinary stuff, such as planets, stars, or commercial aircraft, posting it to social media, and telling others that it’s nefarious drones. This creates social contagion of the idea and action, as others do the same.
Since “mysterious object in sky” gets a lot more social media engagement than “Here’s a not-very-good photo of Jupiter” the whole thing spreads.