Negotiations on the establishment of a group of experts United States which will deal with satellite constellations will continue behind the scenes.

Astronomers are trying to convince the UN to support a protocol that prevents satellites from distorting the view of telescopesHowever, their efforts got bogged down in diplomatic red tape.

At a UN subcommittee meeting in February in Vienna, delegations did not unanimously support the establishment of an expert group to develop guidelines for a regulatory framework for protecting the night sky.

It remains to be seen whether the UN will eventually accept the plan or whether behind-the-scenes negotiations will allow the issue to be taken up at the June meeting.

“The creation of an expert group remains under consideration, but national delegations must come to a unanimous consensus,” explains Andrew Williams, head of external relations at the European Southern Observatory (ESO).

Under the auspices of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), astronomers have launched a lobbying campaign against the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, the 102-member multinational body of the United Nations responsible for the sharing of space. space and the legal order that emerges as a result of his research. About a decade ago, the same subcommittee created a task force on the sustainability of outer space activities, which developed guidelines for limiting space debris.

How satellites threaten the night sky

Astronomers have mobilized to protect the night sky since May 2019, when SpaceXElon Musk’s space company launched the first cluster of Starlink satellites, a “mega-constellation” of approximately 35,000 satellites that provide internet services to the world.

The earth is now surrounded by satellites from Starlink, a company owned by Elon Musk. Big Brother @elonmusk watching you.
pic.twitter.com/17MJjQOmfK

— Russian Market (@runews) February 23, 2023

When sunlight fell on the shiny surfaces of the satellites and was reflected, astronomers and astronomers became alarmed.

Although most telescopes can avoid the light trail of satellites, studies have shown that survey telescopes with a wide field of view, such as the Vera S. Rubin Observatory under construction in Chile, have a hard time avoiding destructive flares.

Radio astronomers are also concerned because the frequency band used by Starlink is close to the frequency band serving radio astronomy, so any scatter could affect observations. Radio observatories are located in isolated areas, well beyond the reach of possible interference from television antennas and cell towers, but even this isolation does not guarantee protection from orbiting transmitters.

Source: Science.org.