Between December 23 and January 6, the Araucaria tree located in the offices of the Las Campanas Observatory in La Serena, IV region of Chile, will be illuminated, simulating a Christmas tree as it has been traditionally done.
In La Serena it is said that many children even believed that the "Viejito Pascuero" (Little Old Man) lived in this place, when they saw the tree lit during the holidays.
The last time the tree lights were turned on was in 2018, after changing all the lighting to LED hoses. Their luminous flux is 800 lumens per linear meter, significantly lower than the maximum indicated in the standard. In this way, it does not contribute to light pollution.
The tree lighting was programmed to be turned on between 9PM and 1 AM, favoring the nighttime hours when there is the highest traffic of people. This also prevents people from receiving light pollution in their homes during sleeping hours.