Satellites Make up to 80,000 Flashing Glints Per Hour. It's a Big Problem for Astronomers - Universe Today

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• XeroxCool@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

  For those that know about trails and the ease of removing them from images through stacking as I thought, it isn’t about that, despite the cover image. It’s about momentary glints disrupting searches for momentary events. Not too much more to the article though, just raising awareness

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• wahming@monyet.cc ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

  What’s the point of looking at the stars of we never reach for them? At some point the telescopes have to move into space, we can’t stay earthbound forever

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  • Chetzemoka@startrek.website ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Or we could regulate the reflectivity of satellites. No one is suggesting we don’t have satellites. Why don’t we do satellites on purpose in a way that still allows us to also do effective astronomy?

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    • beautiful_boater@hexbear.net ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      They can’t make them non-reflective enough to not interrupt really deep observing. Also, that just shifts the problem around. If they are absorbing in the visible, they will likely have huge amounts of blackbody radiation in IR, sub/millimeter, and radio. You would need to make a satellite out of dark matter to not interrupt astronomy.

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    • wahming@monyet.cc ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      No one is suggesting we shouldn’t have satellites.

      Many astronomers suggested exactly that, they were against the approval of starlink.

      we could regulate the reflectivity of satellites

      Starlink has been doing that for 3 years now. There are limited to how nonreflective they can get the satellites.

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  • UlyssesT@hexbear.net ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Throw enough glittering trash into orbit and your “can’t stay earthbound forever” platitudes become self-defeating because at some point nothing could be safely launched.

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    • wahming@monyet.cc ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      The satellite constellations are in LEO. Kessler syndrome is literally not possible at that altitude.

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  • beautiful_boater@hexbear.net ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Man, I just went to a good seminar today on finding habitable exoplanets that emphasized that we currently need ground based telescopes, because it is still impractical to make 30+ meter telescopes in space and would be very expensive, even if could be done. But progress is just launching a bunch of bullshit into orbit to avoid real investment in infrastructure like fiber and other telecommunication lines.

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    • UlyssesT@hexbear.net ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      But progress is just launching a bunch of bullshit into orbit to avoid real investment in infrastructure like fiber and other telecommunication lines.

      With sufficient tweets/xeets/whatever about how “we can’t stay earthbound forever” and “we must spread the light of consciousness to the stars,” extremely credulous “I FUCKING LOVE SCIENCE” bazinga brains will happily see actual science being trampled upon in favor of performative spectacle bullshit.

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  • sharedburdens@hexbear.net ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Yo I have this amazing bridge I’m selling, and you seem like a wise investor.

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    • UlyssesT@hexbear.net ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Just use fluffy euphoric speeches about destiny and reaching for the stars, prattle that could fit in a movie with a soundtrack composed by Hans Zimmer, and you can sell the “I FUCKING LOVE SCIENCE” crowd almost anything, including actual contempt and dismissal for actual scientists (astronomers in this case). so-true

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• Raffster@kbin.social ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

  Why do satellites need lights anyhow? I hate how I can no longer watch a clear sky at night. Progress be damned!

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  • quicksand@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    It’s reflected light from the Sun as they orbit, not lights installed on them. Maybe they can use a non-reflective coating or something for new ones though

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    • skulkingaround@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      You will be pleased to know starlink has recently started doing exactly that after working with astronomers to mitigate this issue.

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