68 Folks Share The Nighttime Photos That Made Them Realize How Small We Truly Are

Some photographers manage to capture exactly what it feels like to be out and about at night — the beauty of the night sky and the cinematic solitude that comes with it. But ultimately, what most people feel at this time is closer to fear, and a kind of emptiness that comes with the unknown. There’s actually a scientific explanation for this feeling.

Human beings are diurnal. We live and thrive in daylight and ultimately need the sun to survive and get vitamin D, which helps keep us stable (or, well, as stable as we can be). Because of this, studies suggest we feel most vulnerable at night. Our vision is reduced, which puts us at a disadvantage, and our bodies instinctively react to darkness, even if we find it beautiful.

Psychologically, there’s also a natural brain response to the dark that can lead to a stronger sense of fear at night. Experts call it “pareidolia,” or the tendency to see specific images in random or ambiguous visual patterns. For example, you might look at a coat rack in the dark and immediately think it’s a burglar standing in your home.

Your brain automatically overreacts and jumps to the worst-case scenario as a way of preparing for a potential threat, even when there’s no real danger to begin with. So yeah, if you’ve ever thought being afraid of the dark was irrational or something only kids experience, well, you couldn't be more wrong.

Historically, our relationship with the night has always been quite complex. The common childhood belief that there are monsters under the bed isn’t as irrational as it may seem, either. In fact, historians trace many of these fears back to the way the human mind fills in the gaps created by darkness. Well, allow us to explain.

As we all know, electricity has existed for a long time, but the modern lightbulb wasn’t perfected until the 1870s. So, you can imagine just how long, dark, and mysterious nights once felt. Because of this, the brain would naturally create “monsters” to explain unfamiliar shapes, missing details, or strange sounds hidden in the dark.

Some of the pictures in this thread, however, aren’t illuminated by electricity at all, but rather by natural environmental lighting, like snowy mountains reflecting moonlight or glowing mushrooms that appear almost fluorescent in photos. And that’s because, well, they actually are.

While it might seem weird to us normies to see glowing mushrooms, biologists have been studying these fungal species for years and have identified several reasons why they glow. Mostly, they use light instead of scent, unlike flowers, to attract pollinators and other creatures that help spread their spores. They even have internal clocks that tell them when it’s time to “call” these helpers.

Other photos, however, aren’t lit naturally and instead rely on either neon signs or the LED lights that most cities use, replacing the warmer high-pressure sodium lights of the past. Because of this, experts have raised concerns about a growing modern issue: light pollution caused by ALAN (artificial light at night).

Studies show that the widespread use of artificial lighting not only hides the stars but also disrupts the planet’s carbon balance. This happens because plants, microbes, and even animals can become confused about the time of day, causing them to release more carbon dioxide through respiration than they normally would.

But remember, not everything is bad. We are only humans after all, and we've even managed to take these artificial lights and turn them into something akin to art. Making a gas station look mesmerizing, or even a cactus in the middle of the desert, only goes to show how humans are able and capable of being creative and talented.

I'll bet some of these even evoke quite a feeling inside you. Maybe a sense of nostalgia from when you might have seen the northern lights years ago, or just the feeling that you're in the middle of nature, breathing in clear air. With that said, which one of these night pics was your favorite, and why? Let us know below!