[Interview+] Did Ground-Based Astronomy Already Lose to Mega-Constellations?
BONUS PART STARTS AT 24:48
Watch here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/0RvsOFWZFtw
There soon will be tens of thousands of satellites in orbit. Possibly, even millions. Does it mean that ground-based Astronomy is a lost cause? How can we make it work? Also, how is New Horizons doing?
🟣 Guest: Dr. Alan Stern https://alanstern.space/
New Horizons: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/new-horizons/
LUCY: https://lucy.swri.edu/
00:00 Intro
00:57 How's New Horizons doing
02:17 Next target
08:43 More science for New Horizons
11:07 Possible follow-up missions
13:18 Funding issues
19:05 New Horizons continues to do science
23:48 LUCY mission
30:00 Mega-constellations vs ground-based astronomy
46:06 Current obsessions
50:38 Final thoughts
Comments (5)
"Democracy was invented in the Americas"!! I thought it was the ancient Greeks! The arrogance! What history books has Dr Alan Stern been reading? The bit about the New Horizons mission was very interesting though. Thanks Fraser.
I agree with you. It’s unfortunate that someone so gifted in scientific inquiry is as personally arrogant and ignorant as Dr. Stern has always been. His only saving grace is his bullheadedness helped make New Horizons happen. The only difference is it was the first mission to a Kuiper Belt object and not the last mission to a planet.
Glib Dr Stern ... spin spin spin. The most political and opinionated of astronomers. Warmed-over Elon Musk thoughts, stumping for Pluto's planethood still, on-message as always on about his funding, telling everyone to give up the night sky while presenting himself as an "optimist". Even neglected to mention that he dove to the Titantic on the doomed Titan submarine - yes, THAT submarine - spin, Dr Stern, spin. He very smoothly segues from fact to opinion, often without notification. I tend to think of him as more of a politician than a scientist. I simply don't trust scientists who willfully ignore, obfuscate, or downplay controversies they don't agree with.
Alan Stern and Carolyn Porco are 2 of my favorite NASA folk. His New Horizons photos just blew my mind with a frozen Nitrogen heart, but so did Carolyn's Cassini flying THROUGH the plumes of Enceladus to sniff it. Both great scientists & speakers. Sorry Fraser, I agree with Stern, the satellites will end up filling the sky. If astronomy wants to still 'see', getting the sat launchers to agree ahead of time to pay a tithing to astronomers so we can launch a 40Meter @ L2 is way better than to carry Protest signs in front of Spacex. With everyone now protesting Data Centers, Launching data centers to space will be the name of the game. And it will start happening soon. Get on the bandwagon and ask for a space tax now. After the centers are launched-we get nothing. Alan made good argument.
Brilliant interview, so good to listen to Dr Alan Stern with positive outlook and his optimistic look into the future. Thank you Fraser for another great interview and I hope some of Dr Alan's enthusiasm rubs of on you. The world needs more people with Dr Alan Stern's positivity.