Philips Wake-Up Light Tested in Worlds Northernmost Town

Philips recently launched an interesting campaign to test the effectiveness of their wake-up light in Longyearbyen Norway.

If you like me have never heard of Longyearbyen, it is the northernmost town situated only 600 miles South of the North Pole. During the winter, the people of Longyearbyen are plunged into four long months of total darkness, so in late October when the sun set for the final time until spring, residence were given a Wake-up Light to test. These lights gradually emit light to simulate the rising of the sun in your bedroom. This supposedly helps prepare the body for a more gentle wake up. Residents will trial the product until December and are reporting their experiences on the campaign website.

To be honest, I find it difficult enough to get out of bed in the winter, and could not imagine having to live in total darkness for that long, so am quite curious to see how effective this light will be. So far the residence seem to be reporting mixed results, but that said more people have said they are waking up feeling either great or okay than tired.