Astronomers Worldwide Troubled by New ‘Cell Phone Towers in Space’ – By Eric Mack (CNET) / Nov 28, 2022
An international group of scientists is concerned by the brightness of a huge satellite, in terms of both visible light and radio waves.
A sprawling new satellite built to connect directly with mobile phones on the surface is brighter than most of the stars in the night sky, according to astronomers who are calling it a threat to their work and humanity’s view of the universe.
The offending orbital object is AST SpaceMobile’s Bluewalker 3, which was launched on Sept. 10, but its 64-square-meter (693-square-foot) array of solar panels and antennas was just fully unfurled earlier this month.
The International Astronomical Union coordinated observations from around the planet, which found that the satellite is almost as bright as stars such as Antares and Spica, the 15th and 16th brightest in the night sky, respectively. Another study found it to be a little less reflective, on par with the 22nd brightest star or so.
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