Human beings have advanced in a wide range of ways, with innovation and scientific knowledge increasing by several orders of magnitude recently. One major aspect of this involves going to space because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up taking humanity to the next stage of its evolution, and this usually involves launching satellites which several private enterprises such as SpaceX are also trying to do.
SpaceX is launching a series of satellites for its Starlink internet service, and that may very well enable countless people to obtain access to high speed internet regardless of where they live. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that these satellites might ruin astronomy in the future since they might create streaks in any and all photographs that astronomers might be trying to take of space and the stars.
One thing to bear in mind here is that this problem has not become all that prevalent yet. Only one observatory has complained of streaks caused by Starlink satellites so far. However, it should also be noted that the amount of satellites that would get launched will increase exponentially in the coming years, with a number of other companies trying to offer satellite based internet as well so that they can capitalize on the demand that has been seen for this service.
The main issue with these satellites is that they are going to be in low-earth orbit. That means that they could obscure our view of the sky. Internet access is definitely important and it should be expanded to as many people as possible, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of scientific research. Humanity needs to be able to look at the stars if we want to progress as a society and explore the outer regions of space.
Read next: Consumers survey shows how well their favorite brands know them
SpaceX is launching a series of satellites for its Starlink internet service, and that may very well enable countless people to obtain access to high speed internet regardless of where they live. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that these satellites might ruin astronomy in the future since they might create streaks in any and all photographs that astronomers might be trying to take of space and the stars.
One thing to bear in mind here is that this problem has not become all that prevalent yet. Only one observatory has complained of streaks caused by Starlink satellites so far. However, it should also be noted that the amount of satellites that would get launched will increase exponentially in the coming years, with a number of other companies trying to offer satellite based internet as well so that they can capitalize on the demand that has been seen for this service.
The main issue with these satellites is that they are going to be in low-earth orbit. That means that they could obscure our view of the sky. Internet access is definitely important and it should be expanded to as many people as possible, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of scientific research. Humanity needs to be able to look at the stars if we want to progress as a society and explore the outer regions of space.
Read next: Consumers survey shows how well their favorite brands know them