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Is there a reason why satellites have to emit light? The sky pollution from these is incredible. We won’t be able to see starry sky soon.
by wellthisisgreat 5y ago
Is there a reason why satellites have to emit light?
The sky pollution from these is incredible. We won’t be able to see starry sky soon.
- zardo 5y agoThey don't emit light, they are bright when the satellite is sunlit against the night sky.
- wellthisisgreat 5y agoAh i see, thank you. So I guess nothing can be done and we are approaching the end of the starry sky as we know it
- thatguy0900 5y agoWhy is this downvoted, it's correct, right? Surely more than one company will have a satellite network, at that. Stars are already gone, to a large extent.
- Asraelite 5y agoThat only applies to dawn and dusk. In the middle of the night satellites don't get illuminated. They can still be a small problem for telescopes then, but you won't notice them with the naked eye.
- genericone 5y agoThe solar panels are only reflecting light during the 'moving up to orbit' phase of the launch. After a few weeks the solar panels will be tilted in a different direction, no longer casting bright streaks in the night sky.
- thatguy0900 5y agoCould you solve this with some kind of vantablack esque covering? Would that cause heat issues or something?
- bhhaskin 5y agoThat is exactly what they have done. It cuts down quite a bit.
- randyrand 5y agogive they’re in LEO that should be a really small amount of time right after sunset? Seems like that would not ideal telescope lighting. I’ve heard astronomers don’t like these sats, but the physics of how it’s so bad doesn’t make sense to me.