Experts warn Elon Musk's satellites could 'end astronomy' and 'light up the night sky'.

Experts warn Elon Musk's satellites could 'end astronomy' and 'light up the night sky’. Astronomers have warned that Elon Musk and others’ plans to put millions of satellites in orbit risk “devastating” astronomy and cutting us off from the stars. Timelapse footage from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in Chile's Atacama Desert shows how even the world's darkest skies are now lit by manmade objects in orbit. A new study says that future plans, led by Musk’s SpaceX, to launch more than 1.7 million satellites into orbit could end astronomy as we know it, even as the newly minted trillionaire promises to send humans to Mars. They say the number of satellites circling the Earth should be limited to no more than 100,000 faint objects, below the threshold of naked-eye visibility. The study is the first to calculate the full impact that large satellite constellations could have on the brightness of the night sky. Concerns have also been raised about the potential effects of such projects on human health and the environment - as they could also make night time lighter. This could not just disrupt our sleep, but damage ecosystems. Since 2019, the number of satellites in orbit has risen sharply to more than 14,000, largely driven by the deployment of SpaceX’s Starlink communications network. Plans for future satellite constellations have expanded significantly. ”Until now we have managed, but it's getting worse," said astronomer Olivier Hainaut. Musk himself wants to put one million additional satellites in orbit to support space-based data centres - but astronomers say if he does, we could well say goodbye to stargazing.