BIO
Dr Meredith Rawls Rawls is a stellar astronomer and software developer working as a research scientist with the Vera C. Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) group at the University of Washington. As a software developer, Rawls is involved in developing algorithms that can identify objects in telescope data that have changed and characterise them accordingly. Her work also entails researching how low-earth orbit satellites affect astronomy and what satellite operators can do to reduce their impact on the night sky.
How do low-Earth orbit satellites pose a problem for ground-based astronomy?
The main thing is that there are so many of them that are currently being launched, and are planned to be launched, and they reflect sunlight, so they can be really bright. The brightness actually surprised some of the satellite operators – they hadn’t anticipated how bright their satellites were actually going to be. Astronomers were used to sometimes seeing satellites, but now it’s an order of magnitude more, and they’re going to be showing up very commonly in observations from ground-based telescopes.
We have had low-Earth orbit satellites for many years. Have they always been a problem?
Denne historien er fra Issue 119-utgaven av All About Space.
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Denne historien er fra Issue 119-utgaven av All About Space.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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15 AUTUMN STARGAZING TARGETS
Go on a night-sky treasure hunt as the brighter evenings give way to the cooler months
MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE WHY IS VENUS SO DRY?
A new study reckons the answer lies high in the Venusian atmosphere
WHEN BLACK HOLES TURN WHITE
Can bouncing black holes help physicists find the ultimate theory of everything?
THE MOON'S THIN ATMOSPHERE IS MADE BY CONSTANT METEORITE BOMBARDMENT
While the solar wind also contributes to the atmosphere, meteorites are the main culprit
INTERSTELLAR TRAVEL AND HOW TO BECOME A SPACE TOURIST
Having explored much of the Solar System, attention is now turning to the stars beyond
NASA'S PERSEVERANCE ROVER FINDS POSSIBLE SIGNS OF ANCIENT RED PLANET LIFE
Further analysis is needed, but a rock contains potential evidence that life once existed on Mars in the distant past
A NASA TELESCOPE MAY HAVE FOUND ANTIMATTER ANNIHILATING IN POSSIBLY THE BIGGEST EXPLOSION SINCE THE BIG BANG
The massive explosion was captured in 2022
Jameel Janjua "This is how we get to Mach 3”
Jameel Janjua made it to the bitter end in a Canadian government astronaut selection in 2009, but wasn't chosen. He found a different path to space through Virgin Galactic
BOEING NEEDS TO IMPROVE QUALITY CONTROL ON THE SLS MOON ROCKET
The NASA Inspector General's report finds serious quality-control issues affecting the upgraded version and expects cost overruns and delays
DARK ENERGY
THE MOST DOMINANT FORCE IN THE UNIVERSE IS ALSO ITS MOST MYSTERIOUS AND MOST UNANTICIPATED
