US EditionSatellites May Blind Space Telescopes By 2035, Scientists Say
A NASA-led study predicts 96% of images from three space telescopes could be affected by satellite light streaks due to a surge in low Earth orbit satellites.
- If all currently filed plans are executed, there will be 560,000 satellites orbiting Earth by the 2030s, according to a study.
- Reflected light from these satellites could affect 96% of images taken by major space telescopes like NASA's SPHEREx and ESA's planned ARRAKIHS telescope.
- While deploying satellites at lower altitudes than telescopes could mitigate the issue, this could potentially deplete Earth's ozone layer, according to the study.
42 Articles
42 Articles
According to a recent NASA report, up to 40 percent of Hubble images and up to 96 percent of images from three other space telescopes could be unusable in the next decade.
Almost All Space Telescope Images Could Soon Be Contaminated, NASA Warns
Light from the half a million satellites that humanity is planning to launch into Earth's orbit in the coming years could contaminate almost all the images taken by space telescopes, NASA astronomers warned Wednesday.
Satellites keep photobombing the Hubble telescope, and it’s getting worse
A simulated image representing the projected contamination by satellite trails in one of the future space telescopes. The stripes of light reflected from artificial telecommunication satellites outshine the otherwise pristine image of two galaxies interacting in the background. | Image: NASA / Borlaff, Marcum, Howell (Nature, 2025) It’s getting harder and harder for the Hubble and other telescopes orbiting Earth to capture pristine images thank…
NASA study shows how satellite ‘light pollution’ hinders space telescopes
By Will Dunham WASHINGTON, Dec 3 (Reuters) – An exponential increase in the number of satellites placed in low-Earth orbit has brought advances in telecommunications including broadband access in rural and remote areas worldwide. It also has caused a surge in light pollution in space that imperils the work done by orbiting astronomical observatories. A new NASA-led study focusing on four space telescopes – two currently operational and two plann…
Satellite-generated lights threaten future images of the Universe captured by space telescopes, warns NASA.
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