M Spitschan, GK Aguirre, DH Brainard, AM Sweeney – Scientific Reports, 2016
The illumination of the environment undergoes both intensity and spectral changes during the 24 h cycle of a day. Daylight spectral power distributions are well described by low-dimensional models such as the CIE (Commission Internationale de l’Éclairage) daylight model, but the performance of this model in non-daylight regimes is not characterised. We measured downwelling spectral irradiance across multiple days in two locations in North America: One rural location (Cherry Springs State Park, PA) with minimal anthropogenic light sources, and one city location (Philadelphia, PA). We characterise the spectral, intensity and colour changes and extend the existing CIE model for daylight to capture twilight components and the spectrum of the night sky.
- A tungsten halogen light source (SL1-CAL; StellarNet, Inc., Tampa, FL) with a corresponding NIST-traceable spectral irradiance measurement at its exit port provided by the manufacturer. This provided relative spectral irradiance calibration at long wavelengths.
- A deuterium light source (SL3-CAL; StellarNet, Inc., Tampa, FL) with a corresponding NIST-traceable spectral irradiance measurement at its exit port provided by the manufacturer. This provided relative spectral irradiance calibration at short wavelengths.
