Stars and Astronomy

For some, the star constellations are great heroes, unhappy lovers, power-hungry people, monsters, or powerful beings that watch over us. For others, they are symbols of the laws by which people should live. The sky is the home of God in the Jewish, Christian and Islamic faiths, and many pantheistic peoples also see it as the dwelling of higher beings. Countless stories have been told over the millennia around hearths and campfires, to pass the time, but above all to pass on the values ​​and laws of their own culture.

This connection to the starry sky and the night has still inspired artists over the last few centuries. Even though darkness is often equated with evil or backwardness, the night is often seen as a time for rest and reflection. It is the opposite of the bright, busy day. Without the darkness of the night, according to Friedrich Nietzsche, we would forget what light is.

If you have ever experienced a natural night you know that it is not completely without light. Moonlight has its own magic, and the stars provide inspiration, strength and hope. The night is more than the absence of light, it has its own colors and a magic that no artificial light can replace.

The oldest cultural asset of humanity is fading

The starry sky is mankind’s oldest cultural asset and is thus protected by UNESCO as a world cultural heritage. But most people in Europe and North America hardly look up anymore. No wonder, because for 99% of people in these areas the stars disappear in the glow of artificial light. Artificial skyglow brightens up our sky so much that the Milky Way and most of the stars disappear.

But although we can only see a few stars with the naked eye and hardly anyone knows their names anymore, they still have meaning for us. People follow extraordinary astronomical events on the news, nighttime tours at Dark Sky Parks are quickly booked up, and in observatories, people crowd around the telescopes at public events. Age, gender, skin colour or level of education are irrelevant. In the light of the stars, we are all equal.

The stars point the way to a better society

Children are particularly fascinated by stars. For many, astronomy is their first contact with science and technology. It gave me the strength to fight through all those dry physics lessons. One day, I thought, I would reach the stars.

Unfortunately, only few stick to this fascination. Maybe it’s because looking at the stars from one’s own home is often frustrating. There’s not much to see with all this light pollution. Instead of looking up at the night sky, millions of people prefer to look at the screen and follow the adventures of the Millennium Falcon, the Starship Enterprise or one of the many other science fiction stories. They allow us to dream of worlds and beings that we would rather not encounter ourselves. Or they show us a future in which humanity has finally understood how pointless all our wars are and what we could achieve together if we let go of greed and hatred.

Looking at the stars helps us understand our place in the universe

For some, the dream of reaching the stars becomes reality. Government astronauts take great risks, not out of a thirst for adventure, but to help us understand life on Earth with their research. Many research projects in materials science, psychology and medicine would not be possible on Earth.

Astronomers explore the vastness of space from their observatories. Thanks to them that our view of the world and our existence has changed fundamentally. Humans are not at the center of creation, and the universe does not revolve around Earth. We are part of something bigger, while our planet is small and very fragile. We must take responsibility for the consequences of our actions. There is no place to which we can flee if we destroy our planet. We must look after our home.

Interestingly, this knowledge brings hope rather than despair. People who look at the starry sky find strenght and confidence there. It connects people from all over the world. Perhaps the knowledge that everyone sees the same stars reminds us that we are not alone. Those who remain enveloped in the light dome of their city only see their own world, their own problems. Our world is getting smaller.

Light pollution from above – and lots of space junk

But astronomy also has very pragmatic reasons. It has led us humans to fly thousands of kilometers high and conquer the orbit. Without astronomy there would be no satellites and therefore no GPS, no satellite television and much worse weather forecasts. We can hardly imagine life without satellites.

However, it is precisely these satellites that are creating a new type of light pollution, as they reflect sunlight onto the night side of the Earth. For amateur astronomers, this is a nuisance – comparable to graffiti on the Mona Lisa. For astronomical research, the satellites mean disruptive light streaks on long-term images. These can be laboriously calculated out, but information is always lost in the process, possibly including an early sighting of an asteroid on a collision course. Research is currently underway to determine whether the additional light can influence the orientation of birds and insects.

The growing number of satellites poses another danger. Orbit is already full; evasive maneuvers are not popular because they cost fuel and shorten the lifespan of the satellites. Each collision creates countless pieces of debris that fly through space like small projectiles and can hit other satellites or rockets. The earth is already surrounded by a belt of space junk. The denser this pile of junk becomes, the higher the number of collisions until no more satellites can fly. Goodbye GPS, goodbye satellite internet. Space travel will then be impossible.

I admit, that sounds a bit dramatic, but unfortunately it is very realistic given the human ability to fill every spot with garbage. Not all of the debris stays up there; the Starlink satellites, for example, enter the atmosphere at the end of their life. There they burn up into fine dust – and attack the ozone layer.

If glowing Starlink satellites aren’t futuristic enough for you, you can hope for an exciting innovation in the advertising industry. For years, there has been talk of using satellites to write advertising messages in the night sky. Then perhaps soon, sitting around a cozy campfire in a remote location, we’ll no longer just see Orion and the Big Dipper above us, but also the Coca-Cola logo. Cheers!