--- title: This company’s plans to deploy space mirrors could... description: A new peer-reviewed study calculates that Reflect Orbital's planned space-mirror satellites, which reflect sunlight to Earth on demand, would brighten the... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/this-company-s-plans-to-deploy-space-mirrors-could-jeopardize-the-night-sky-for-many-vkothoup7 twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: This company’s plans to deploy space mirrors could jeopardize the night sky for many | daily.dev og:description: A new peer-reviewed study calculates that Reflect Orbital's planned space-mirror satellites, which reflect sunlight to Earth on demand, would brighten the... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/this-company-s-plans-to-deploy-space-mirrors-could-jeopardize-the-night-sky-for-many-vkothoup7 og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/vKOTHoUp7.png og:image:alt: This company’s plans to deploy space mirrors could jeopardize the night sky for many og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # This company’s plans to deploy space mirrors could jeopardize the night sky for many **[MIT Technology Review](https://daily.dev/sources/technologyreview)** · 7 min read · 1 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary A new peer-reviewed study calculates that Reflect Orbital's planned space-mirror satellites, which reflect sunlight to Earth on demand, would brighten the night sky far beyond their intended target zones. A single satellite would appear 40 times brighter than the full moon within a 5-kilometer patch and as bright as the full moon up to 14 kilometers away. Combining 400 satellites, as the company eventually plans, would produce light equivalent to 10,000 full moons in the target area and a visible glow up to 80 kilometers out. Astronomers and dark-sky advocacy groups, including DarkSky International, are calling on the FCC to reverse its approval of the company's first test satellite, Eärendil-1, citing threats to astronomy, aviation, and wildlife. Reflect Orbital's CEO disputes the study's assumptions but has not released supporting data or models, according to the lead researcher. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### How much would Reflect Orbital's space mirror satellites brighten the night sky? A single Reflect Orbital satellite would appear about 40 times brighter than the full moon within its intended 5-kilometer target area, and would still be as bright as the full moon up to 14 kilometers from the beam's center. The full planned fleet of 400 satellites could produce light as bright as 10,000 full moons in the target zone, with a visible glow above the horizon up to 80 kilometers away, according to calculations by astronomer Miroslav Kocifaj and colleagues. _Follow daily.dev for updates on how emerging space technologies like orbital mirrors could reshape astronomy and environmental policy._ ### Why are astronomers and environmental groups opposed to Reflect Orbital's satellite mirrors? Astronomers argue the beamed sunlight is incompatible with preserving dark skies, since even scattered light far outside the intended target zone would brighten the sky significantly, disrupting astronomical observation. Groups including DarkSky International and the American Bird Conservancy have urged the FCC to reverse its approval of the Eärendil-1 test satellite, citing risks to astronomy, aviation, and wildlife, and calling for a formal public-interest and environmental review. _Readers weighing the trade-offs of new space technologies can track this debate alongside other space and policy news on daily.dev._ ### Can looking at Reflect Orbital's Eärendil-1 satellite through a telescope damage your eyes? Yes, potentially. Reflect Orbital stated in a March filing with the FCC that observing Eärendil-1 through a telescope larger than 12 inches, a size many astronomers own, may be unsafe for human eyes, though the company claims significant injury is unlikely since the satellite is not constantly bright. _daily.dev helps developers and space enthusiasts stay informed on emerging risks tied to new orbital technologies._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Planned satellite constellations may swamp future orbiting telescopes](https://daily.dev/posts/planned-satellite-constellations-may-swamp-future-orbiting-telescopes-ct06obpxf) · Ars Technica · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [The Download: threats from space mirrors and credit for AI drugs](https://daily.dev/posts/the-download-threats-from-space-mirrors-and-credit-for-ai-drugs-zo2c9lckm) · MIT Technology Review · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [The hole in the law above the Karoo](https://daily.dev/posts/the-hole-in-the-law-above-the-karoo-t5mnsmllr) · TechCentral · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [SpaceX seeks federal approval to launch 1 million solar-powered satellite data centers](https://daily.dev/posts/spacex-seeks-federal-approval-to-launch-1-million-solar-powered-satellite-data-centers-n9usqov7m) · TechCrunch · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [A New Observatory Concept for Imaging UAP Orbs](https://daily.dev/posts/a-new-observatory-concept-for-imaging-uap-orbs-zs5nizcqb) · Medium · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#regulation](https://daily.dev/tags/regulation) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/this-company-s-plans-to-deploy-space-mirrors-could-jeopardize-the-night-sky-for-many-vkothoup7) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"This company’s plans to deploy space mirrors could jeopardize the night sky for many","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/this-company-s-plans-to-deploy-space-mirrors-could-jeopardize-the-night-sky-for-many-vkothoup7","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/this-company-s-plans-to-deploy-space-mirrors-could-jeopardize-the-night-sky-for-many-vkothoup7"},"datePublished":"2026-08-21T09:24:14.804Z","dateModified":"2026-09-14T07:19:28.097Z","description":"A new peer-reviewed study calculates that Reflect Orbital's planned space-mirror satellites, which reflect sunlight to Earth on demand, would brighten the...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/6eda5f250c2a2a19e0122c5680c4375b?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/6eda5f250c2a2a19e0122c5680c4375b?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"MIT Technology Review","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"MIT Technology Review","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/a8d03889722f4f22b3986e0b395ff076","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/technologyreview"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/this-company-s-plans-to-deploy-space-mirrors-could-jeopardize-the-night-sky-for-many-vkothoup7","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":1},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"regulation","timeRequired":"PT7M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"MIT Technology Review","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/technologyreview"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"This company’s plans to deploy space mirrors could jeopardize the night sky for many"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/this-company-s-plans-to-deploy-space-mirrors-could-jeopardize-the-night-sky-for-many-vkothoup7#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"How much would Reflect Orbital's space mirror satellites brighten the night sky?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"A single Reflect Orbital satellite would appear about 40 times brighter than the full moon within its intended 5-kilometer target area, and would still be as bright as the full moon up to 14 kilometers from the beam's center. The full planned fleet of 400 satellites could produce light as bright as 10,000 full moons in the target zone, with a visible glow above the horizon up to 80 kilometers away, according to calculations by astronomer Miroslav Kocifaj and colleagues. Follow daily.dev for updates on how emerging space technologies like orbital mirrors could reshape astronomy and environmental policy."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Why are astronomers and environmental groups opposed to Reflect Orbital's satellite mirrors?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Astronomers argue the beamed sunlight is incompatible with preserving dark skies, since even scattered light far outside the intended target zone would brighten the sky significantly, disrupting astronomical observation. Groups including DarkSky International and the American Bird Conservancy have urged the FCC to reverse its approval of the Eärendil-1 test satellite, citing risks to astronomy, aviation, and wildlife, and calling for a formal public-interest and environmental review. Readers weighing the trade-offs of new space technologies can track this debate alongside other space and policy news on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Can looking at Reflect Orbital's Eärendil-1 satellite through a telescope damage your eyes?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Yes, potentially. Reflect Orbital stated in a March filing with the FCC that observing Eärendil-1 through a telescope larger than 12 inches, a size many astronomers own, may be unsafe for human eyes, though the company claims significant injury is unlikely since the satellite is not constantly bright. daily.dev helps developers and space enthusiasts stay informed on emerging risks tied to new orbital technologies."}}]} ```