For Google, “Project Suncatcher” is a sustainable solution to AI’s $3 trillion problem. But for the astronomical community, it’s a new “blight” on the night sky. Scientists are raising objections that the “rising numbers of satellites” are “like bugs on a windshield,” hampering their view of the cosmos.
Google’s plan for “compact constellations of about 80” AI-processing satellites, orbiting 400 miles up, places them in the same low-Earth orbit as controversial networks like Starlink. These satellites reflect sunlight, creating bright streaks that ruin sensitive, long-exposure images from ground-based telescopes.
This creates a direct conflict between two fields of scientific and technological advancement. Google’s move is intended to solve an environmental problem on Earth—the massive land and water use of datacenters. But in doing so, it creates a new environmental problem in orbit.
This is not the only environmental catch. The plan’s “green” credentials are also tarnished by the “hundreds of tonnes of CO2” emitted by each rocket launch required to deploy these constellations.
As Google, Musk, and Nvidia all race to put datacenters in orbit, the astronomical community is bracing for impact. This sets the stage for a major battle over the “high ground,” pitting the future of AI against the future of our ability to see the universe.