SPS Effects on Optical and Radio Astronomy

5. Space astronomy may be faced with severe scheduling problems as outlined in Groth's paper. A secondary effect of the SPS on optical astronomy is the potential impact on naked-eye astronomy. The human eye is a background-limited detector, and the increases in sky brightness as a result of the SPS will make such phenomena as the gegenschein, zodiacal light, and many comet tails invisible from North America. The visibility of the Milky Way will be reduced and the total number of stars visible will be reduced somewhat. These effects may have some impact on the identification of comets, novae, and other variable objects that are generally discovered by voluntary searches on the part of amateurs. The working group also expressed the concern that the SPS-induced changes in sky brightness may reduce the popularity of astronomy as a hobby and erode some of the excellent public support the field has enjoyed in the past. Several members of the group pointed out that the appearance of the night sky will be changed markedly, and that the aesthetics of the change were likely to be an issue and a concern. Finally, the working group assessed the potential financial impact on as.tronomy. It was continually emphasized that an increase in sky brightness is equivalent to a reduction in telescope aperture. Currently, the price of a telescope scales as approximately the cube of the aperture. This means that to build a larger telescope to compensate for a 30% increase in sky brightness would increase the price of the telescope by approximately 120%. RECOMMENDATIONS AND REMEDIES Satellites as a source of light pollution are a phenomenon new to optical astronomy. While the working group attempted to assess as much of the potential impact as possible, the information on which many of the conclusions were based was uncertain. For this reason, the working group recommended five areas requiring future study: 1. The diffuse albedo - Most of the effects discussed by the group are a direct function of the diffuse albedo. It was recommended that a) baffling systems be investigated as a way of lowering the albedo; b) each

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