Environmental Groups Want FCC to Reverse Plans for Space Mirror Satellite
Environmental activists aren’t giving up on trying to shut down a controversial satellite that will use a giant mirror to beam sunlight to the Earth at night.Last month, the Federal Communications Commission cleared US startup Reflect Orbital to launch and operate the satellite, dubbed Earendil-1. The 30-page petition comes from the nonprofit Earthjustice, which filed it on behalf of DarkSky International, Environment America, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, and American Bird Conservancy. The groups argue that Reflect Orbit’s satellite could cause public harm by creating light pollution that disrupts wildlife, potentially blinding people, disabling telescopes, and even causing a car or plane crash if the light is misdirected.
- ▪Environmental activists aren’t giving up on trying to shut down a controversial satellite that will use a giant mirror to beam sunlight to the Earth at night.Last month, the Federal Communications Commission cleared US startup Reflect Orbit
- ▪The 30-page petition comes from the nonprofit Earthjustice, which filed it on behalf of DarkSky International, Environment America, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, and American Bird Conservancy.
- ▪The groups argue that Reflect Orbit’s satellite could cause public harm by creating light pollution that disrupts wildlife, potentially blinding people, disabling telescopes, and even causing a car or plane crash if the light is misdirected
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| Original publisher | PCMag |
| Canonical URL | https://www.pcmag.com/news/environmental-groups-want-fcc-to-reverse-plans-for-space-mirror-satellite |
| Publication time | Thu, 06 Aug 26 18:24:02 +0000 |
| Retrieval time | 2026-08-06T18:25:48.158Z |
| Last seen | 2026-08-06T18:25:48.158Z |
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Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Environmental activists aren’t giving up on trying to shut down a controversial satellite that will use a giant mirror to beam sunlight to the Earth at night.Last month, the Federal Communications Commission cleared US startup Reflect Orbital to launch and operate the satellite, dubbed Earendil-1. But on Thursday, a coalition of environmental groups petitioned the FCC to reverse its decision, claiming: “All of this is unlawful.”The petition argues the FCC “committed multiple legal and factual errors” and ignored its regulatory responsibility in clearing Reflect Orbital’s satellite, which features a 60-by-60-foot deployable mirror. Thus, the decision should be reversed.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at PCMag.
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