The Bright Sun UV is a revolutionary new UV lamp that offers light, heat and UV in one lamp at low wattages. A Bright Sun UV Desert 70W offers comparable heat and UV output than a 160W mercury vapour based UV lamp but its light output is 5 times higher! This is especially important as it was impossible till now to recreate natural lighting conditions inside a terrarium. In nature a light intensity of 100.000 lux and more exists on a sunny day. Especially with desert species a high light intensity is beneficial for the well-being and will influence activity and colours of the animals. While the Bright Sun UV Desert 70W still cannot match the power of the sun with 60.000 lux at 30 cm, it is far ahead of mercury vapour UV lamps (approx. 10.000 lux), fluorescent lamps and incandescent lamps. The base for this high light output is the energy efficiency of the lamp. Most of the energy is converted into light while with incandescent lamps 95% of the input power is turned into heat. The low heat loss of the Bright Sun lamps allow the use even in small vivariums. An effective reflector construction ensures that almost all created heat is concentrated inside the light focus. The lamp is therefore able to create warm basking areas. The spectrum of the lamp is optimized for desert reptiles. Research and tests have shown that reptiles from desert regions prefer a daylight spectrum with a colour temperature of 6000K. This is achieved by the Bright Sun UV Desert. In combination with its heat, UV output and high light intensity the Bright Sun UV is practically a small sun for vivariums. Average life is 6000h, we recommend changing lamps yearly though to provide always the best lighting possible to the animals as the spectrum will change over time. This is typical for metal halide technology and also dependent on the type of ballast used. Also UV and light output will continually decrease over time. The Bright Sun will fit into standard E27 porcelain lampholder and requires a bal