16/07/2026
This is an image showing satellites in the night sky above the Atacama Desert in Chile, captured over a period of one hour on 15 October 2025.
It's been released as part of a study by the European Southern Observatory that says the amount of artificial satellites in the sky is getting worse and, if left untempered, will brighten the night sky so much, astronomers will struggle to study the Universe and continue to make discoveries.
The study found current proposals to launch over 1.7 million satellites into orbit would have "devastating consequences for astronomy."
The study says no more than 100,000 faint satellites – satellites that can't be seen with the naked eye – should be in orbit around Earth at any time.
Such a limit would, say the study authors, ensure astronomers can continue to observe the night sky, unravel the secrets of the Universe, search for alien life and detect hazardous asteroids.
Credit: F. Kamphues, ESO/M. Kornmesser
