U.S. Launches Environmental Study for Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea
takyon writes:
US launches environmental study for Thirty Meter telescope on Mauna Kea
The National Science Foundation will examine the environmental impacts of a proposed optical telescope on the summit of Hawaii's tallest mountain, a project that 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, and say the $2.65bn project will further defile an area already harmed by a dozen other observatories.
The National Science Foundation on Tuesday published a notice of its plans to prepare an environmental impact statement for the $2.65bn Thirty Meter telescope, along with another proposed telescope on Spain's Canary Islands. It will host several meetings on the Big Island of Hawaii in August and said only after it considers public input, the environmental review and the project's technical readiness, will it decide whether to fund the project.
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