SpaceX’s Satellites Are Messing Up Astronomers’ Observations & It’s Just The Beginning.

Do we really need faster connection speeds? Are there are health consequences of beaming the planet with this type of wifi radiation? Starting at the beginning of this new decade, a campaign to launch thousands of new satellites into the space surrounding our planet will begin, which will offer high-speed internet to every region of the Earth — from space.

These satellites are particularly bright and are seen as white streaks.

Their light is so bright that they are competing with our own stars and planets. Some scientists are concerned that these new “mega-constellations” comprised of thousands of satellites could interfere with images taken from telescopes, and potentially interfere with radio astronomy observations. Scientists are warning of a dystopian night sky. Currently, there are 2,200 active satellites orbiting around Earth. However, the Starlink constellation, a project from SpaceX, has started sending out clusters of about 60 satellites into orbit and will continue to do so every few weeks until about 1500 satellites are launched by the end of this year. By the mid 2020’s, there could be upwards of 12,000 satellites in orbit around the Earth. A company from the UK, OneWeb, is also planning to launch between 650 and 2,000 satellites, depending on customer demand. Some astronomers are concerned because the satellites appeared as bright white flashes on their images. Dhara Patel, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich said: “These satellites are about the size of a table, but they’re very reflective, and their panels reflect lots of the Sun’s light, which means that we can see them in images that we take with telescopes.” “These satellites are also big radiowave users... and that means they can interfere with the signals that astronomers using. So it also affects radio astronomy as well.” The sky as we know it will be changed forever and it’s happening right before our eyes. In some ways, it has already changed because many satellites that are currently in orbit can be seen by the naked eye. Soon, it will be impossible not to see satellites while looking up at the sky. It’s unfortunate that we don’t have a say in enforcing any regulations. Sure, the allure of this is attractive — super high-speed internet, no cables and plugs, etc. But, I’m sure there would be a large number of people who think their internet is fast enough as is, and would be okay with keeping a few cables here and there. We seem to be obsessed with always attaining the best of the best, but unfortunately that quickly renders the “outdated” technology useless, which in turn creates a lot of unnecessary waste. “Every culture throughout time has valued the night sky, and many people have enormously meaningful or practical traditions of naked-eye observation, woven right into their culture,” Kathryn Denning, an anthropologist at York University who studies the ethics of space exploration, wrote in an email. Cultural heritage issues, she said, “is taken seriously at the United Nations level, but to my knowledge that hasn’t translated into international rules for visible satellites yet.” Even some animals use starlight for navigation, and it’s hard to know if constellation satellites will have an impact on them, too. Caitlin Casey, an Astronomer from the University of Texas, wants the world to know that messing with the night sky removes “the one thing that all humans have had in the past 200,000 years, millions of years, it’s always been there.” She’s certainly got a valid point there! “My whole attachment to science and pursuing this as a career dates back to seeing the night sky as a child and being mesmerized,” she says. “Astronomy is a unique science: we can’t tinker with things in a lab, experimenting on stars.

The entire science is looking up at the sky, and losing that would be tragic.” Our obsession with ‘the latest and greatest’ has certainly caused us to not always consider what the potential implications of our actions could represent in the future and how they may affect us and our planet. Not to mention the thousands of satellites beaming radio waves down to our planet, is it just me or is anyone else even a little bit concerned about this? Currently, we are still able to escape Wi-Fi and cell signals, which in my opinion is the greatest way to recharge our mind, body and soul. Unfortunately, it seems that this may not be an option in the future, as we’ll have the ability to “connect” wherever we are in the world, which inevitably will come with pros and cons. Discover how Conscious Breathing can improve your life in just 10 days through our guided conscious breathing challenge! Get access to daily videos, guided meditations, and community support to master conscious breathing basics. Release stress, activate heart coherence, improve digestion, sleep better and more! Sign Up For The Chall.

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References:

• https://spaceflightnow.com/2019/11/11/successful-launch-continues-deployment-of-spacexs-starlink-network/
• https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-50870117?fbclid=IwAR3_PyT_TveVN7O-QgwvrXqKUH5FTYzIMZX39pGQRAc_NVsuq-0E9JXGIqQ
• https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2020/1/7/21003272/space-x-starlink-astronomy-light-pollution