Vast satellite constellations are alarming astronomers
They get in the way of the cosmos
ON MAY 24TH 2019 a Falcon 9 rocket built by SpaceX launched 60 communication satellites into a low orbit around the Earth. That evening they appeared as a string of sunlit dots moving across the sky, many of them as bright as the brightest stars, a source of passing wonder and mystery to casual observers—and a portent of doom to astronomers.
This article appeared in the International section of the print edition under the headline “Goodbye darkness, my old friend”
International November 27th 2021
From the November 27th 2021 edition
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