A new preprint paper from researchers at NASA’s Ames Research Center reports that satellite trails are significantly degrading data from the SPHEREx space telescope. The study analyzes SPHEREx observations collected between May and September of last year and finds that 73.3% of the telescope’s images contain at least one artificial satellite trail. The results indicate that a large majority of captured images are affected by human-made objects moving through the telescope’s field of view, producing contamination in the scientific data. Both outlets describe the finding as part of a broader issue facing space-based astronomy, where increasing satellite deployment raises the likelihood of trails in observations. The paper also suggests the problem is expected to worsen as more artificial satellites are launched and placed into orbit. The study is currently available as an arXiv preprint, and the reported percentages relate specifically to the May–September observation period examined in the analysis.
Most SPHEREx images are affected by artificial satellite trails, new study finds
A new preprint paper from researchers at NASA’s Ames Research Center reports that satellite trails are significantly degrading data from the SPHEREx space telescope. The study analyzes SPHEREx observa...
- A NASA Ames Research Center-led preprint reports that 73.3% of SPHEREx images include at least one artificial satellite trail.
- The analysis covers SPHEREx observations taken between May and September of last year.
- Satellite trails contaminate the telescope’s images, reducing data quality.
- The issue is expected to become more common as the number of artificial satellites in orbit increases.
- The findings are presented in an arXiv preprint.
Unfortunately, there's more bad news to report on the clear skies front. A new paper, available on the arXiv preprint server from researchers at NASA's Ames Research Center, reports that 73.3% of images the agency's new SPHEREx space telescope collected between May and September of last year were contaminated by at least one artificial satellite trail. And it's only going to get worse from here.
2 months agoUnfortunately there’s more bad news to report on the clear skies front. A new paper, available in pre-print on arXiv from researchers at NASA’s Ames Research Center, reports that 73.3% of images the agency’s new SPHEREx space telescope collected between May and September of last year were contaminated by at least one artificial satellite trail. And it’s only going to get worse from here.
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