1. United States
2. Mass.
3. Letter

The U.S. just approved a satellite that will beam light to Earth at night. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently approved a demonstration license for startup Reflect Orbital’s 'Earendil-1' satellite, which is designed to direct sunlight back to Earth at night using an orbital mirror. Despite intense pushback from the scientific and ecological communities, the FCC declared that evaluating light pollution, telescope interference, and other non-radio environmental harms falls entirely outside its regulatory jurisdiction. This decision essentially greenlights the test without assessing its optical impacts, leaving a glaring vacancy in federal oversight as private entities look to commercialize artificial space-based lighting. Astronomers and conservation groups are deeply concerned about the dangerous precedent this ruling sets. The American Astronomical Society has warned of 'catastrophic interference' with federally funded research, while organizations like Dark Sky International emphasize the damaging effects of artificial night light on human circadian rhythms and nocturnal wildlife. If Reflect Orbital succeeds, it plans to deploy up to 50,000 mirror satellites by 2035—a scale of deployment that critics warn would permanently brighten the planet's darkest skies and make ground-based astronomical observations virtually impossible. This is completely irresponsible, please put a stop to it now!