With the New Horizons spacecraft successfully making its flyby of Pluto, we are now getting the first close up images of this distant world. The spacecraft went into radio silence for 22 hours while it maneuvered to photograph Pluto and its moons. The first signal returned was simply a full status report, and only now, a day later are we beginning to see the imagery returned. Given the 2.9 billion miles between the spacecraft and Earth, it will take about 16 months to get all of the data back.
The first images are fascinating! Eleven thousand foot high ice mountains create a rugged landscape. I find myself waiting for further images, the surface of Pluto promises to be far different than any terrain we have seen elsewhere in the solar system.
New close-up images of a region near Pluto’s equator reveal a giant surprise: a range of youthful mountains rising as high as 11,000 feet (3,500 meters) above the surface of the icy body. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute
I read every comment posted to DV, partly to moderate them. On a rare occasion I need to delete something that violates the rules. I also read them seriously, sometimes they contain something to think about, or even write about…
The shadow of Mauna Kea appears through the mist and haze at sunset
“People do not belong on the mountain if they don’t care about it’s sacredness.” – Anonymous comment on DarkerView
I will give whomever wrote this comment credit, he only asks that we care about the belief of others, not necessarily share them. This is an important distinction and a wise one. I have seen social media comments that take this much further, that claim an ownership of Mauna Kea and express the opinion that “haoles” should be excluded totally from the summit of Mauna Kea.
Personally, I think that anyone should be able to visit Mauna Kea, that no test for their personal beliefs should be necessary. The mountain does not belong to anyone one, or any specific group. It is a special place that belongs to all. It is important that we should care about the beliefs of others, to have some respect for those about us. But we need not share that belief.
A very young moon over Waikoloa, this is only 26 hours after new, visible to the unaided eye as a sliver in the fading glow of sunsetNew Moon will occur today at 15:24HST.
There are more than a few of us examining our relationship with the mountain. The current controversy has any intelligent person asking hard questions of themselves. And like me, some express their thoughts in words. Hopefully words that resolve some questions. But other times all we have are questions.
The following is a guest post from Chris Stark. Thanks Chris!
A colorful sunset seen from the summit of Mauna Kea
If not TMT, then what?
I work as an IT professional in the astronomy community. For months now, my daily life has been assaulted by the phrase “‘A’ole TMT” scrawled all over people’s homes, vehicles, and businesses — I can’t seem to get away from that phrase. As frustrating as it can be for me to randomly encounter this sentiment, I understand people’s anger, frustration, and feelings of loss of identity. But there’s more at stake here than a telescope on a sacred mountain.
There are as many reasons WHY people oppose TMT as there are people actually opposed — and that is not a slight towards the opposition. Every person’s perspective is unique and personal, no matter whether in support or opposition to TMT. I have my own reasons for supporting TMT, and while they may echo many of the sentiments heard from the other supporters, as with everyone else, my mix of perspectives ends up giving me my own unique angle on all of this.
The reason “‘A’ole TMT” causes me so much frustration is that no one is presenting viable alternatives to TMT. Like it or not, something needs to breathe life into this stagnant, low-wage economy of Hawaii Island. We deserve better than what we currently have. We’re smart, talented, and hard-working. We’ve been through a lot together.
The opponents to TMT say “‘A’ole TMT!”, but to what do they say “‘Ae!”?
Who among us wants to work for an unfair low wage for tedious, mundane work with no room for advancement? Who among us wants our children to have the exact same lack of opportunities we have by choosing to stay in this place we call home?
The upcoming generations of Hawaii Island children are smart and skilled; they have bright futures, and many of them are going to work in technologically advanced fields — and no matter the field, technology has become a major component. The question is, are they going to work in these fields here at home, or are they going work in these fields somewhere else, likely not to return? The more we say “no” without providing an accompanying “yes” alternative, the more we are losing our best and brightest minds to the mainland and foreign countries.
I graduated from a Hawaii Island public high school in the early 1990s, and the vast majority of my friends left this island and now have lives elsewhere with no real motivation to ever return. I’m also of the age now where many of my colleagues have children ranging from primary school all the way to pushing closer to graduation from college and beyond. How many of my colleagues want to see their sons and daughters pack up and leave, never to return? How many of the opposition want to see their sons and daughters pack up and leave?
What is more damaging to the Hawaiian culture: a population working dead-end, slave-wage, jobs with no alternatives? A population thinly dispersed across the world with no physical connection to their homeland or family? Or a telescope on a sacred mountain top whose very goal is to bring heaven closer to earth?
We need the education, work force development, and jobs promised by TMT.
In this illustration a black hole emits part of the accreted matter in the form of energetic radiation (blue), without slowing down star formation within the host galaxy (purple regions). Credit: M. Helfenbein, Yale University / OPACAn international team of astrophysicists led by Benny Trakhtenbrot, a researcher at ETH Zurich’s Institute for Astronomy, discovered a gigantic black hole in an otherwise normal galaxy, using W. M. Keck Observatory’s 10-meter, Keck I telescope in Hawaii. The team, conducting a fairly routine hunt for ancient, massive black holes, was surprised to find one with a mass of more than 7 billion times our Sun making it among the most massive black holes ever discovered. And because the galaxy it was discovered in was fairly typical in size, the study calls into question previous assumptions on the development of galaxies. Their findings are being published today in the journal Science.
The data, collected with Keck Observatory’s newest instrument called MOSFIRE, revealed a giant black hole in a galaxy called CID-947 that was 11 billion light years away. The incredible sensitivity of MOSFIRE coupled to the world’s largest optical/infrared telescope meant the scientists were able to observe and characterize this black hole as it was when the Universe was less than two billion years old, just 14 percent of its current age (almost 14 billion years have passed since the Big Bang).
Even more surprising than the black hole’s record mass, was the relatively ordinary mass of the galaxy that contained it.
Most galaxies host black holes with with masses less than one percent of the galaxy. In CID-947, the black hole mass is 10 percent that of its host galaxy. Because of this remarkable disparity, the team deduced this black hole grew so quickly the host galaxy was not able to keep pace, calling into question previous thinking on the co-evolution of galaxies and their central black holes.
I think we can agree that the mountain is heavily used, visitor numbers have steadily increased over the past few years. The summit road is busy, particularly as sunset nears, a steady line of vehicles heading for the summit. During the recent discussions on the future of Mauna Kea, many have noted these increased numbers with dismay. Various suggestions have been floated to reduce the numbers of people on the mountain, but there are problems with any changes.
The recent extended closure of the summit road and visitor center has brought this issue into sharp focus. Comments by various parties including Governor Ige and TMT protesters reveal very different visions for access to Mauna Kea.
A pair of visitors watch dawn atop Mauna KeaI admit a personal agenda here, I go to the mountain regularly for several different reasons. Sometimes to enjoy the dark skies with a telescope, sometimes leading group excursions for our local astronomy club, other times to simply photograph the beauty of this place. Even though my duties as a an observatory engineer include going to the summit a couple times each week, I find myself in the high country of Mauna Kea regularly for other reasons.
Why are the numbers increasing? Those responsible for caring for our mountain, the Office of Mauna Kea Management (OMKM) have done nothing to encourage visitors to the mountain. Actually they often attempt to discourage visitation. The basic legal framework for management of the mountain is the Mauna Kea Comprehensive Management Plan1, there is a a sub-plan specifically addressing public use of Mauna Kea. A stated goal in the document is to control visitor numbers.
Public activities will be encouraged at lower elevations in order to limit traffic to the summit region, protect public safety and health, and minimize human impacts on cultural and natural resources. – MKCMP Public Access Plan 1
In the lead up to the BLNR meeting the Office of Mauna Kea management released some of the ranger’s and MKVIS staff reports. These document the day to day happenings at the MKVIS and the summit over the last three months since the protests began.
Protests on Mauna Kea, June 24, 2015. Photo by Dan Birchall, used with permission.I knew it to be bad, I had heard about a number of the specific events detailed in these reports. I really did not have a full picture of the occurances, something that these reports make very clear.
The reports detail repeated vandalism, some petty thefts, continued harassment of staff and visitors, and repeated and illegal blocking of the road.
Many have declared these reports to be outright lies, claiming that these things never happened. I know better. I know the people who wrote these reports personally. I have breakfast with them routinely in the Hale Pohaku dining room and have listened to them relate these same occurrences. Often the words they used were a little less diplomatic than these written formal reports, the product of frustration and anger. Everything in these reports rings true, down to specific events that were described to me first hand.
Opponents of astronomy on Mauna Kea often denigrate astronomy in a way that they would find totally objectionable if the same tactics were reversed and directed towards their cause. They repeatedly use words like meaningless, industrial, and claim the observatories exist only for profit. Those who make such claims fail to understand astronomy in much the same way they accuse telescope supporters of failing to understand their beliefs about Mauna Kea.
The Gemini telescope prepares for the night, in the background is the CFHT telescopeThey neglect to think that destroying the telescopes atop Mauna Kea would be seen as an act of desecration of enormous magnitude. To millions of people across the world the great telescopes represent something far more than simple buildings and telescopes. They are a concrete symbol for hope, an indication that not all is dismal and lost in this world, that one can still dream.
Each day we watch news of war that leaves cities laid waste, brutal sectarian violence, of economic strife, the wholesale destruction of the environment. When seeing news of people killing each other for no reason beyond minor differences in beliefs, it is so easy to despair that humanity is doomed to a dismal future.
My 18″ telescope Deep violet set up under the stars at the MKVIS.There have been some revisions to the rules as originally proposed. Most notably the closure hours begin at 10pm in place of 8pm, this would allow the VIS to operate the normal evening public program.
I have yet to locate a copy of the final approved rules, it is only a few minutes ago that the decision was approved. I expect they will appear on the DLNR website eventually (Tonight? Monday?). They are effective immediately, I would expect there to be a legal requirement to post them.
It is safe to say that there will be no overnight observing at or near the Mauna Kea VIS. You will need to find a site elsewhere or at least one mile from the access road.
These rules are effective for 120 days, after which we will see what happens. In that time they may be allowed to lapse. It also allows the DLNR time to approve similar, permanent rules through the regular process in place of these emergency rules.
120 days and counting… I make that November 8th, 2015.
Update: Found them!
(a) The area referred to in this rule as the “restricted area” is defined as any lands in the public hunting area that includes the Mauna Kea Observatory Access Road and one mile on either side of the Mauna Kea Observatory Access road.
(b) As used in this rule, the term “transiting” means operating, or being a passenger in, a motor vehicle traveling at a reasonable and prudent speed and having regard to the actual and potential hazards and conditions then existing.
(c) No person shall at any time possess or control in the restricted area any of the following items: sleeping bag, tent, camping stove, or propane burner.
(d) No person shall enter or remain in the restricted area during the hours of 10:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m., unless the person is transiting through the restricted area on the Mauna Kea Observatory Access Road or is lawfully within or entering or exiting an existing observatory or a facility operated by the University of Hawaii.
