  The ultraviolet and optical background forms a baseline for any observation
of the sky. It includes emission lines and scattered light from the atmosphere;
resonant scattering from the Lyman lines of interplanetary hydrogen and the
scattering of sunlight from Solar System dust (zodiacal light); scattering of
starlight from interstellar dust (DGL) with emission from molecular hydrogen
fluorescence or from line emission in selected areas; and an extragalactic
component seen most easily at high Galactic latitudes. We will discuss the
different components of the diffuse radiation field in the UV and the optical.
We close with a hope that there will be new observations from missions near the
edge of the Solar System.
