The Federal Communications Commission approved the launch of Eärendil-1, a satellite developed by Reflect Orbital designed to test reflecting sunlight into nighttime regions using an 18-meter thin-film reflector in low Earth orbit. The 142-kilogram spacecraft, scheduled to launch later this year at 600 to 650 kilometers altitude, will direct reflected sunlight to specific areas on Earth for several minutes at a time. Reflect Orbital plans to deploy thousands of such satellites for applications including construction site lighting and search-and-rescue, though astronomers and environmentalists have raised serious objections to the concept.
The FCC approval came despite nearly 1,900 critical comments on the application, with concerns centered on potential disruption to animal and plant diurnal cycles and interference with optical astronomy. Vera Rubin Observatory's chief scientist called the plans "even crazier" than existing satellite constellations, warning that imprecise reflectors would scatter light across the sky. The European Southern Observatory estimated that the full proposed constellation of 50,000 satellites would increase background sky brightness by a factor of three to four, degrading telescope sensitivity to faint objects. The FCC determined such environmental and astronomical impacts fell outside its jurisdiction, citing Reflect Orbital's commitments to collaborate with NASA and the National Science Foundation on protecting optical astronomy.