Being able to see in the dark is often not easy. For humans, we typically need to find a flashlight and, more often than not, find new batteries to power the device. For animals it can be different. Some animals can see well and at night, and some animals have large eyes like owls that catch a lot of light, and some animals use other senses to gather information about their surroundings. We humans, on the other hand, are left fiddling with candles when the power goes out for a period of time. But there are some life forms that take a completely different approach: bioluminescent life forms. Bioluminescent life forms produce their own light and carry it in their bodies. This article will address bioluminescence and try to explain it. The first point to know about bioluminescence is that there are many things still unknown about bioluminescence. Sometimes you have to ask a philosopher's opinion on such a complex topic. Aristotle makes a good introduction to the meaning of bioluminescence when he suggests: "Some things which are neither fire nor forms of fire appear to produce light by nature." Bioluminescence is the biochemical emission of light by living organisms. It's a chemical reaction that burns fuel and releases light that barely produces any heat: a cold light. Bioluminescence serves the three basic purposes of “finding food, finding mates, and defending against predators,” says Edie Widder, co-founder, president and senior scientist at the Florida-based Ocean Research and Conservation Association (ORCA). Up to 80% of our ocean life has the ability to produce light, and although bioluminescence is rare on land, there are still species such as fireflies, earthworms and even bacteria that can light them... half of paper ..... .technical profiles of bioluminescence and other physical properties. Recently, the Case Lab and Cyril Johnson at UCSB's Physics Electronic Shop developed a scaled-down version of the bathyphotometer that is an underwater vehicle. These tools develop every day and become more and more complex, helping us understand the mysteries of luminous creatures. The impact of this technology and growing research will influence and change the future of what we now know about bioluminescence. Even today, there are more and more scientists creating new and more complex instruments and finding more data that we didn't have access to before. There is still a lot we don't know about bioluminescence and in the future all these questions will be answered with the right technology and research advancement. Until then, we can enjoy nature's flashlights - batteries not included.