this is gonna be what they use as an excuse to round everyone up isn't it
welp
S.M. Pritchard
@smpritchard.bsky.social
477 Followers
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Physics BSc. | Hard SF Writer/Worldbuilder | Space Artist | Amateur (hopefully one day professional) Astronomer | They/Them | Opinions my own
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"okay cool could you write me a prescription for $500,000 and a functional government please"
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Not zero. They impede both radio and optical astronomy (ask how I know!), and the sheer volume of these swarms unnecessarily increases collision hazard. And the price point makes it a hard sell. For many rural folk it's often the only option, making it an effective monopoly. Starlink isn't cheap.
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If they did it for electricity they can do it for fiber, surely.
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Finally ordered a heater for my secondary mirror, but waiting until it arrives before getting a powersource so I can figure out how I want to integrate it into the scope. Having to go out and manually de-fog makes the photometry I get almost useless. Can't do good science in sub-optimal conditions!
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In the case of starlink I'd say they need zero and instead we should be investing heavily in a public fiber network. Megaconstellations in general should be outright banned. Ideally military satellites should also be banned, but I realize that's a fool's errand. But yes, more regulations is a start!
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Long-term, payload delivery systems should probably transition to non-rocket systems such as launch loops or skyhooks. Both however require substantial upfront cost and in the case of launch loops a constant stream of power. And both have dramatic failure modes. There are no perfect solutions alas.
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Correct. But we can still hand it to the actual talented engineers, from whom he steals all the credit, that managed to accomplish this.
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Congress will be back in session next week. Take a few minutes today to urge your members of Congress to support the astronomical sciences! aas.org/action-alert...
Action Alert: Protecting Astronomical Programs in Fiscal Year 2026 | American Astronomical Society
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#poetry
