A proposed optical telescope on the summit of Hawaii's tallest mountain has faced strong opposition from Native Hawaiians who consider the area sacred.
Native Hawaiians have long protested the plan to build what would be one of the world's largest optical telescopes on Mauna Kea.
A notice of the National Science Foundation's plans to prepare an environmental impact statement was published on Tuesday. In August, it will host a number of meetings on the Big Island of Hawaii, but only after it considers public input, the environmental review and the project's technical readiness.
The international consortium of scientists behind the effort have been moving forward with plans to build the telescope on Mauna Kea for more than a decade and in 2010 completed an environmental study required by Hawaii law for construction on the summit. If the telescope can't be built in Hawaii, TIO wants to build it on the Spanish island of La Palma.
Under US law, the National Science Foundation must invest in the latest study. TIO, a partnership between the California Institute of Technology, the University of California and government-backed research institutions in Canada, China, India and Japan, plans to obtain $800m, 30% of the estimated cost of construction, from the US government.
Robert P Kirshner, TIO's executive director, said that government funding will allow the entire US astronomy community to access the observatory.
The TIO tests the best ideas and does the most important observations to help understand where we are in the universe and how it works.
The supporters of the project argue that it will bring jobs and educational opportunities to the area.
Native Hawaiians who have been arrested and charged for protesting the project say the sacred site should not be further damaged. There is a question of our right to self-determination as defined by international law, but I think it's so much bigger than that. We learn to live and be interdependent.
She said that the new study will force opponents to take time away from their lives to give their opinions.
People don't accept our "no" for an answer. The person said, Pisciotta said.
The US astronomy community said in a report last year that the National Science Foundation should invest in at least one or two of a new class of telescopes. The skies from the northern hemisphere would be covered by the project proposed in Hawaii, while the universe would be observed from the south.
The US needs at least one project to remain a leader in ground-based astronomy, according to the report.
The University of Hawaii and the US government began using Mauna Kea for astronomy in the 1970s as its frequent clear nights, dry atmosphere and dark skies made it one of the best places to observe deep space.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
