 The Defense Meteorological Satellite Program Operational Line Scanner, DMSP, slash OLS, nighttime light database has been widely used for two decades to study human activities and natural phenomena from space. Over time, five datasets have been derived from it, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. These datasets have been applied to a wide range of research topics, including demographic analysis, urbanization, and socioeconomic development. Additionally, researchers have gained valuable experience in retrieving data from the DMSP slash OLS database and applying it to interdisciplinary research topics. As such, the DMSP slash OLS database is expected to remain an important tool for studying human activities and natural phenomena from space in the future. To facilitate further research, a transparent platform should be established to encourage data sharing, communication, and discussion of extraction methods and synthesis activities. This article was authored by Qin Xu Huang, Xu Yang, Bin Gao, and others. We are article.tv, links in the description below.