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This company’s plans to deploy space mirrors could jeopardize the night sky for many
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Reflect Orbital’s plan to beam sunlight from orbit may unintentionally brighten the night sky far beyond its target area.
Engineers designing optical sensors or satellite constellations must consider increased sky brightness that could impair ground-based observations and affect missions requiring dark skies. The study shows that even a single satellite could outshine the full moon within kilometers, and constellations could create pervasive glow, affecting telescope sensitivity and data quality. Regulatory approvals may be challenged, requiring additional environmental review before deployment.
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Reflect Orbital plans to launch a test satellite with an 18-by-18-meter mirror to validate a concept of up to 50,000 larger 54-by-54-meter satellites for on-demand sunlight beaming.
Modeling indicates a single satellite could appear up to 40 times brighter than the full moon within its 5-km beam and remain as bright as the full moon up to 14 km away; a constellation of 400 satellites could produce glow visible as far as 80 km from the beam centre.
Astronomers and environmental groups have warned that the plan threatens dark-sky astronomy and have urged the FCC to reverse its approval and conduct a full NEPA review, while the company claims safeguards but has not shared supporting data.
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