Astronomers demand more regulations to prevent industry from ruining the Moon’s “environment”
According to two articles yesterday in the British press (here and here), both quoting extensively one astronomer, if strong regulation and control (given to them of course) isn’t imposed immediately, the space tourism of billionaires is going to ruin the Moon’s pristine environment, which on its far side is especially perfect for radio astronomy. From the first link:
“There’s a rush of companies and states who might want to get in on the act on the moon,” said [astronomer Martin Elvis, who added that there were also other concerns. “There’s a desire there from the billionaire class, ‘Oh I would love to spend a week on the moon’. And you don’t need many billionaires to start adding up. If they go without coordination, then it’s a mess. We could well lose these unique opportunities to do science on a scale that we couldn’t possibly imagine.”
One of the most exciting possibilities is the use of the far side of the moon for radio astronomy. As all signals from the Earth are blocked, telescopes would, Elvis said, have the sensitivity to see into the so called “dark age” of the universe, after the big bang but before stars had formed.
Elvis is based at Harvard and also co-chairs a working group at the International Astronomical Union (IAU) that wants astronomers to be given full legal control of the Moon, preventing anyone from building anything without their permission so they can instead build their telescopes there instead.
The problem is that the astronomical community has so far shown little interest in building telescopes in space. It has instead focused on building giant Earth-based telescopes while trying to get governments to restrict the launch of satellite constellations that might interfere with those telescopes. Now it wishes to restrict lunar development as well.
Elvis however admits “It’s a sort of first come, first served situation, which encourages people to rush in and do things without thinking too hard.” Let me translate: Everyone else is beating us to the Moon because we haven’t been interested in going, so now that we might be interested we want governments to shut down our competition.
It is long past time for astronomers and the IAU to stop trying to use government to squelch everyone else and get in the game. Initiate the building of telescopes both in space and the Moon. Not only are these better places to build telescopes than on Earth, it will give astronomers some credibility when they ask others to give them their own space.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
According to two articles yesterday in the British press (here and here), both quoting extensively one astronomer, if strong regulation and control (given to them of course) isn’t imposed immediately, the space tourism of billionaires is going to ruin the Moon’s pristine environment, which on its far side is especially perfect for radio astronomy. From the first link:
“There’s a rush of companies and states who might want to get in on the act on the moon,” said [astronomer Martin Elvis, who added that there were also other concerns. “There’s a desire there from the billionaire class, ‘Oh I would love to spend a week on the moon’. And you don’t need many billionaires to start adding up. If they go without coordination, then it’s a mess. We could well lose these unique opportunities to do science on a scale that we couldn’t possibly imagine.”
One of the most exciting possibilities is the use of the far side of the moon for radio astronomy. As all signals from the Earth are blocked, telescopes would, Elvis said, have the sensitivity to see into the so called “dark age” of the universe, after the big bang but before stars had formed.
Elvis is based at Harvard and also co-chairs a working group at the International Astronomical Union (IAU) that wants astronomers to be given full legal control of the Moon, preventing anyone from building anything without their permission so they can instead build their telescopes there instead.
The problem is that the astronomical community has so far shown little interest in building telescopes in space. It has instead focused on building giant Earth-based telescopes while trying to get governments to restrict the launch of satellite constellations that might interfere with those telescopes. Now it wishes to restrict lunar development as well.
Elvis however admits “It’s a sort of first come, first served situation, which encourages people to rush in and do things without thinking too hard.” Let me translate: Everyone else is beating us to the Moon because we haven’t been interested in going, so now that we might be interested we want governments to shut down our competition.
It is long past time for astronomers and the IAU to stop trying to use government to squelch everyone else and get in the game. Initiate the building of telescopes both in space and the Moon. Not only are these better places to build telescopes than on Earth, it will give astronomers some credibility when they ask others to give them their own space.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
So when he leaves the observatory, do they announce, “Elvis has left the building”?
Well said Bob…. I have been reading for decades about plans to build all sorts of telescopes on the far side of the moon… With nothing forthcoming other than PowerPoint presentations.
A few human outposts would certainly pollute the radio wavelengths, but I have read very convincing cases for lunar telescopes in the visible spectrum, of all sorts of design… Huge lightweight mirrors that could resolve exoplanets in enough detail to detect oceans and even artificial light during the night time.
It is no good in closing the stable door after the horse had bolted, the guys planning these potential projects have to deal with reality, and form there proposals accordingly.
( It gives me a slight headache thinking if such literal moonshot projects stand less chance under DOGE or more chance with SpaceX’s rapid development of Starship…)
The astronomers will have to just fit their hobby around other serious activities. Too bad.
DOGE is designed to stop fraud and waste of US taxpayers’ funds. There may then be money for things like lunar telescopes.
It is totally unrealistic to expect radio silence on lunar farside. There will be com sats and nav sats in lunar orbit supporting surface exploration.
A Starship might be suitable for deployment of an ultra-large optical reflecting telescope in deep space. While the motions of such a telescope could be damped out, it might prove much more difficult to dampen out the motion of the Moon, if that was the telescope base!
Besides, shielding from the emissions of the Earth is much more relevant to radio astronomy than to optical… contrary to popular myth, the far side of the Moon is not always “dark”!
The surface area of the far side of the moon is pretty big, and with a curvature much more than earths. Radius is 27% of earth and no Ionosphere to reflect radio waves. So radio telescopes have plenty of room for silent zone management. Like Mr Z said scientists just have to start building with a plan to draw some lines.
One problem might be that building on the moon needs to be trial and error at first. because of the surface unknowns. Not like the totally specified space deployment of JWebb where you can take 20 years of on earth spending followed by an all or nothing deployment.
The arrogance and sense of entitlement of the academic left never fails to astonish.
Ray Van Dune wrote: “… contrary to popular myth, the far side of the Moon is not always “dark”!”
The ground may not always be dark, but the sky is, 709 hours a day.
Telescopes of all wavelengths may do well on the Moon, and radio telescopes located at the bottom of craters may do very well, being protected from surface radio sources.
What the radio astronomers really need to worry about are the satellites orbiting the Moon, broadcasting all over the place. Maybe they actually need radio telescopes in heliocentric orbits away from the Earth-Moon system. These might be affordable, if only the astronomers would quit relying upon government money and government mismanagement of their projects. JWST would not have taken so long nor cost so much, if they had gone with commercial builders. Hopefully, this will become common in the near future, and we can get far more science for the bucks spent, and get it much sooner, too.
Let’s scale up the easy way – Launch 4 radiotelescopes placed every 90 degrees (90/180/270/SunEarth L2) around Earth’s orbit. Let’s get a 186,000,000 mile antenna.
are these the same ones who love stealing land from indigenous people and building telescopes on the Holy mountains of the Apache and Hawaiian people? Just wondering…
Astronomy currently functions by rationing access to sensors. The astronomy hierarchy doesn’t want to give that power up.