Residents of a rural area of California were recently surprised to see a dazzling light shining at night from nearby mountains, illuminating part of the desert below.
Unbeknownst to them, this strange nighttime illumination was the final step in a company project to erect thousands of giant mirrors in space to reflect sunlight back to Earth at night.
The nighttime lighting demonstration, near the town of Lone Pine in the Sierra Nevada region, was led by an American startup called Reflect Orbital, whose goal is almost science fiction: launching 50,000 satellites into space over the next decade to illuminate parts of the world at night.
In July, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved Reflect Orbital’s proposal to launch a first demonstration satellite next year, which will orbit Earth and, via a 59-foot-diameter mirror, reflect sunlight in 3-mile-wide beams with intensities ranging from moonlight to midday brightness of the sun.
The demonstration in California, undertaken earlier this month, demonstrated what this would look like on the ground, much to the amazement of residents, one of whom described the lights as “blinding”. Large moving lights were erected near Mount Whitney, with Reflect Orbital comparing the glow to that of a full moon.
This allowed, according to the company, a realistic simulation of one of the benefits of this technology: helping search and rescue teams and other emergency responders at night. Other intended uses include exposing crops to sunlight, replacing broken street lights, and even providing solar power for military operations, all with the press of a button on an app.
“Search and rescue teams are expected to be our first customers, so this was a real-world test conducted alongside teams who would use our technology,” said a spokesperson for Reflect Orbital, which partnered with a local search and rescue team for the demonstration.
“We will continue to work closely with communities and local authorities wherever we operate, and we are excited to show how this technology can help save lives.” »
A coalition of environmentalists and astronomers, however, is much less enthusiastic about Reflect Orbital’s ambitions. These groups criticized the company and the FCC for threatening to change the separation between night and day, which would affect everything from people’s sleep to wildlife and the ability to see the stars from Earth.
“It’s a stupid project,” said Jan Hasselman, senior attorney at Earthjustice, an environmental group. “There are a lot of unresolved questions and significant potential impacts. Literally all life on Earth has evolved based on the rhythm of day and night and there is a ton of data showing that messing with that is not a good idea.”
“There needs to be some sort of discussion and analysis before granting these people the right to fundamentally alter the night sky,” he added. “The proposal for 50,000 of these satellite mirrors is crazy and would truly end the night sky as we know it.”
In August, four groups represented by Earthjustice asked the FCC to reconsider its approval, citing concerns that opening the skies to mirror satellites, which would rise about 400 miles (645 km) above the Earth’s surface before reflecting light, would cause a litany of problems.
Animals such as birds, insects and mammals rely on the reliable change between day and night for food, shelter and mating, with any change being disastrous for some species.
Astronomers, meanwhile, have complained that this nighttime glare would worsen existing light pollution and trigger a general rush to add more satellites into orbit — Elon Musk’s SpaceX plans to place 1 million celestial data centers around Earth — which would dim the stars and cause more space debris that could come back down as pollution to our world.
There are also concerns that the blurring of day and night could harm people’s health by disrupting their circadian rhythms while they sleep. Looking directly at the unusual, dazzling light of the sun at night, just like doing so during a solar eclipse, would harm people’s eyes.
Reflect Orbital said its technology would actually help the environment by increasing the energy output of solar panels when sunlight is shined on them at night, reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
But some climate scientists have warned against interfering with the amount of solar energy reaching Earth. Proposals for solar geoengineering, in which particles are sprayed into the atmosphere to deflect sunlight away from Earth instead of directing it toward it, have also drawn fierce opposition.
“Global warming is happening because Earth is in a radiative imbalance due to the massive amounts of greenhouse gases we have released into the atmosphere,” said David Ho, a climatologist at the University of Hawaii.
“Some people are promoting the already unbalanced idea of installing space mirrors facing away from the Earth to reflect the sun’s energy to reduce global warming. Imagine wanting to flip these mirrors so that the Earth becomes warmer.”
Reflect Orbital said it had “substantial discussions” with scientists and astronomers about using its technology to avoid areas such as astronomical sites, national parks and other wildlife-rich areas.
“We support monitoring and want to play a role in developing it,” a spokesperson said. “We believe it is our responsibility to work alongside governments, scientists and regulators rather than ahead of them. »
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