[NHCOLL-L:2134] Re: lighting in exhibit halls

[Paul Callomon]

Dear Dr Brooks,

I'm no expert, but my understanding is that the higher the color temperature of light, the more damage it does. This is because shorter wavelengths are more energetic or something. Beyond white light lies UV, which does the real damage. Fluorescents have a higher color temperature than incandescents for a given wattage, and halogens even higher. Highest of all is photographic flash light, which is as white as direct sunlight.
Squid fishermen in the Japan Sea have a very high incidence of skin cancer as they work all night under ship-long festoons of 1000-watt arc lamps that attract the squid. There is enough UV in these relatively low-color-temperature incandescent lamps to tan these guys black. How much more so, then, in a halogen lamp?

Regards,

PC. 

Paul Callomon
Collections Manager
Malacology, Invertebrate Paleontology and General Invertebrates
Department of Malacology
Academy of Natural Sciences
1900 Parkway, Philadelphia PA 19103-1195, USA
Tel 215-405-5096
Fax 215-299-1170
Secretary, American Malacological Society
On the web at http://erato.acnatsci.org/ams/


Paul Callomon
Collections Manager
Malacology, Invertebrate Paleontology and General Invertebrates
Department of Malacology
Academy of Natural Sciences
1900 Parkway, Philadelphia PA 19103-1195, USA
Tel 215-405-5096
Fax 215-299-1170
Secretary, American Malacological Society
On the web at http://erato.acnatsci.org/ams/


>>> "Dan Brooks" <dbrooks at hmns.org> 11/12/03 04:26PM >>>
Greetings all

We're in the process of re-doing our African Wildlife Hall.  The lighting guy we've contracted wants to use Halogens, and says they won't really harm the specimens as much as any other bulb (except for fluorescents which he says is worse).  We're going to put some filters to cover the overhead lights, but I'd like to get some feedback from the group on how harmful different types of lights are....... I've even heard from one school that direct sunlight is the only thing that will cause fading in your mammals and birds......

any feedback would be most appreciated!

kind thanks
dan brooks

-------------------------------------
Daniel M. Brooks, Ph.D.
Curator of Vertebrate Zoology
Houston Museum of Natural Science
1 Herman Circle
Houston, TX 77030-1799

dbrooks at hmns.org 

PH- 713-639-4776
FAX- 713-639-4767