On 9 March, AGU joined 28 scientific societies and organizations expressing concern over Reflect Orbital’s application to construct and launch an NGSO satellite.

The undersigned 28 scientific societies and organizations, collectively representing tens of thousands of scientists and researchers both in the US and across the world, appreciate the
opportunity to provide comments on this application from Reflect Orbital to construct and launch a non-geostationary (NGSO) satellite. We have grave concerns about the service that Reflect Orbital intends to provide, namely the intentional redirection of sunlight to illuminate parts of the Earth at night. This plan could have far-reaching consequences for human health, wildlife, and entire ecosystems, in addition to significant impacts on astronomical observations and access to the night sky, as well as potential unknown impacts from adding solar energy to the earth’s atmosphere and ocean. For these reasons, we believe that the proposal does not serve the public interest, and urge the Commission to deny the application, or at least require a thorough environmental impact assessment before any license is granted.

Read the full letter and signatories here.