Nighttime lights are much more than decoration – they provide data that can help determine socioeconomic indicators when no other reliable information exists for instance in parts of developing Asia where economic accounting systems are weak, or when satellite images are more frequently available than such data.

During this holiday season, we will admire magnificent nighttime light displays both indoors and outdoors. Even from space, lights will shine bright thanks to the wonders of satellite imagery.

Satellite images are transforming how social and economic statistics are compiled.

The data are more than just satellite images of Earth; researchers used these images to derive proxy measures of various official statistics.

The presumption is that most social and economic activities at night require light; hence the intensity of nighttime lights and the area they cover should correlate with socioeconomic indicators and economic development.