Latest news with #QuietSky
Time of India
3 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
Astronomers fear impact of Musk's Starlink on South Africa mega-telescope observations
By Wendell Roelf CAPE TOWN: Astronomers working with South Africa's SKA telescope are pushing authorities to ensure that any licensing agreement with Elon Musk 's Starlink will protect their groundbreaking observations, a senior scientist said. Discussions to bring Musk's internet service Starlink in South Africa have already been contentious, with parent company SpaceX criticising local shareholding laws while backing equity equivalent programmes. South Africa said it will review its Information and Communication Technology sector rules but will not back down on government policies to transform the economy three decades after white-minority rule ended. Scientists fear South Africa's Square Kilometre Array (SKA-Mid), the world's most powerful radio telescope together with another array co-hosted in Australia, will have their sensitive space observations distorted by Starlink's low-orbiting satellites. "It will be like shining a spotlight into someone's eyes, blinding us to the faint radio signals from celestial bodies," Federico Di Vruno, co-chair of International Astronomical Union Centre for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky, told Reuters in a telephone interview. Di Vruno said the SKA Observatory, where he is spectrum manager, and the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) were lobbying for license requirements to reduce the impact on observations in certain frequency ranges, including some that SKA-Mid uses. That could direct Starlink to steer satellite beams away from SKA receivers or stop transmission for a few seconds to minimise interference, he said. South Africa's current SKA antennae, in the remote Northern Cape town of Carnarvon, use the 350 megahertz to 15.4 gigahertz bandwidth, a range also used by most satellite operators for downlinks. The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa regulator and Starlink did not immediately respond to questions from Reuters about the scientists' concerns. MAJOR OBSERVATIONS South Africa's MeerKAT radio telescope, a precursor to SKA-Mid which will be incorporated into the larger instrument, has already discovered a rare giant radio galaxy that is 32 times the size of the Milky Way. Last year, it found 49 new galaxies in under three hours, according to SARAO. SKA Observatory, an international body, also campaigns for conditions on licensing agreements with other major satellite operators such as Amazon and Eutelsat's OneWeb to ensure quiet skies amid a boom in new satellite launches. "We are trying to follow different technical and regulatory avenues to mitigate this issue on the global stage," Di Vruno said.
NZ Herald
14-05-2025
- General
- NZ Herald
'Gorgeous, beautiful site': Opposition mounts against Westmere helipad plan
Anna Mowbray and Ali Williams' home at Westmere. Photo / Alex Burton Several submitters at the resource consent hearing before three independent planning commissioners have supported the helipad, including Andrew Haslett, who said every concern had been addressed, every environmental safeguard had been put in place, and the applicants had gone above and beyond to mitigate every potential impact. One nearby neighbour, Matthew Lambert, said it had been a transparent process, the applicants had addressed community concerns and modified their plans, which complied with the Auckland Unitary Plan. Elena Keith at the hearing for the proposed helipad. Elena Keith, the secretary of Quiet Sky Waitematā, today said Williams and Mowbray's property 'is a gorgeous, beautiful site' that the group wants to preserve. She said Quiet Sky Waitematā - a group set up to oppose private helicopters in residential Auckland - was still quite young, with 17 members, and 202 donors had provided funds to challenge the proposed helipad. The group's lawyer, Gill Chappell, said Quiet Sky was a well-organised community group that was deeply and genuinely concerned about the broad effects of helicopter activity on the environment. She said the effects on the birds, trees, and amenity were more than minor, and the application must be declined. Dr Matthew Baber, an ecologist providing expert evidence for Quiet Sky, believed there would be at least moderate effects on the coastal birds foraging or resting during the two hours on either side of low tide. He also believed there would be a low likelihood but high impact of potential for bird strike from helicopter disturbance to coastal birds foraging during that low-tide window. Waitematā Local Board member Alex Bonham said the board wanted helicopter movements in urban residential areas to be prohibited in the Auckland Unitary Plan. She said thousands of people in Westmere and Herne Bay had opposed the application. 'Westmere is a quiet residential area with coastal walks and activities. Residents do not want to hear helicopters coming and going every week, perhaps multiple times. 'Residents of Herne Bay who already endured helicopter noise had been campaigning hard on this issue for many years because of the stress and distress experienced by those living in the proximity of already consented helipads. 'We share the concerns that if this were to be granted, it would set a precedent that might lead to more and more helipads across Auckland's coastline, impacting people's health and well being and native fauna. This is not the Auckland we want to live in,' Bonham said. Chair of Urban Auckland, Julie Stout. Photo / Nick Reed Urban Auckland, a group of architects and other professionals dedicated to a better built and natural environment for the past 25 years, is also opposed to the application. In a submission prepared for the hearing, chair Julie Stout said helipads in residential areas were not considered when the Auckland Unitary Plan was drawn up, and it was a developing trend that needed to be taken seriously. She said Waiheke Island provided a lesson where 64 helipads have been granted in relatively low-density residential areas, causing a cumulative effect of prolonged noise, destroying the quiet for everyone else. 'We accept that some public services, like police and ambulance, need to use helicopters, but that is for the public good. Private use of helicopters is not in the public interest, and their acoustic and physical impact extends far beyond their immediate location. 'The Waitematā Harbour and its edges and beaches are important spaces for both birdlife and public amenity. Quiet enjoyment of these is intrinsic to the amenity for all. Sydney and Melbourne do not allow private landing pads in residential areas,' said Stout. Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
