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Even if astronomers wanted to, the cost of replacing all terrestrial optical telescopes by orbital ones would be astronomical. Especially if you include amateur

Even if astronomers wanted to, the cost of replacing all terrestrial optical telescopes by orbital ones would be astronomical. Especially if you include amateurs. Stargazing wouldn't be a thing anymore. And illuminating all of earth? I don't want to imagine the damage that would cause to ecosystems. It would completely take away peoples' choice not to live in a place with street lighting, or even to have a vacation in such a place. Street lighting is bad enough for peoples' circadian rhythms as is.

matz1 7y ago
The world's always changing, they just have to adapt.
- manicdee 7y ago
  Good luck living in a world without pollinators or insectivores.
  - chr1 7y ago
    That's a bit exaggerated, if illumination could kill all insects, there would not be any insects in arctic, which is false.
    - manicdee 7y ago
      How many do you need to lose for the ecosystem to collapse? Not all, and probably as little as one or two species.
Tepix 7y ago
Think about how many satellites that would require. 12,000 satellites are a joke.