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Even in space, telescopes can’t escape photobombers

Light reflected from satellites pollutes the images taken by telescopes orbiting Earth, as well as those on the ground. Without mitigations, this will only get worse.
By
  1. Meredith Rawls

    1. Meredith Rawls is in the Department of Astronomy, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.

The past five years have seen an unprecedented increase in the number of satellites orbiting Earth. The repercussions are only beginning to be understood, but one thing is clear: the night sky is fundamentally changing, and astronomers have a front-row seat1. The unfolding spectacle, as seen from the ground, manifests as bright streaks in astronomical images, caused by sunlight reflected off satellites as they move across the sky. However, writing in Nature, Borlaff et al.2 report simulated observations showing that the proliferation of satellites also has an impact on space-based telescopes.

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Nature 648, 42-43 (2025)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-025-03725-x

References

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Competing Interests

M.R. is funded by National Science Foundation (NSF) grants to operate Vera C. Rubin Observatory. She also serves on the American Astronomical Society (AAS) Committee for the Protection of Astronomy and the Space Environment (COMPASSE), which does some advocacy work, and she co-leads SatHub at the International Astronomical Union (IAU) Centre for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky. Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NSF, AAS or IAU.

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