{"id":67462,"date":"2015-12-14T12:04:35","date_gmt":"2015-12-14T12:04:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=67462"},"modified":"2015-12-21T10:00:08","modified_gmt":"2015-12-21T10:00:08","slug":"why-the-worlds-most-powerful-telescope-has-just-been-ruled-unlawful","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2015\/12\/why-the-worlds-most-powerful-telescope-has-just-been-ruled-unlawful\/","title":{"rendered":"Why the World’s Most Powerful Telescope Has Just Been Ruled Unlawful"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Four<\/a>

Four of the Mauna Kea, the Subaru Telescope, the Keck I and II telescopes, and the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility. Credit: Alan L.<\/p><\/div>\n

7 Dec 2015 – <\/em>Last week, Hawaii\u2019s Supreme Court voided a construction permit<\/a> for the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT), a $1.4 billion observatory that would peer into distant corners of our universe and back in time, exploring new cosmic landscapes with a resolution twelve times sharper<\/a> than that of Hubble.<\/p>\n

The TMT is intended to be the flagship observatory of the northern hemisphere and the most powerful optical telescope on Earth. There\u2019s just one problem: the telescope\u2019s construction site, near the summit of the dormant volcano of Mauna Kea, has another celestial heritage. In the Hawaiian religion, Mauna Kea is a home of deities, the fiery birthplace of all life.<\/p>\n

\u201cMauna Kea is an origins place,\u201d Kealoha Pisciotta, a spokeswoman for the native Hawaiian organization Mauna Kea Anaina Hou<\/a>, told Gizmodo. \u201cIt is not a realm for mankind, but a realm where we go to learn the ways of the heavens.\u201d<\/p>\n

To Pisciotta and her people, the eighteen-and-a-half story high TMT\u2014the largest observatory by far on a summit that already hosts thirteen\u2014would be a desecration. And after a bitter fight over the legality of the TMT\u2019s construction, Hawaii\u2019s advocates for the preservation of natural and cultural heritage have just scored a major win.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the Thirty Meter Telescope folks, this is a moment of reckoning,\u201d science historian Leandra Swanner of Arizona State University told Gizmodo. \u201cThe TMT activists feel that justice has been served. But I don\u2019t think it\u2019s the end of the story.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two Celestial Traditions<\/strong><\/p>\n

A simmering cauldron of lava ensconced in a pile of basalt, Mauna Kea is the tallest mountain in the world, from its underwater base to its snowcapped peaks, which reach nearly 14,000 feet into the sky. The name \u201cMauna Kea\u201d means white mountain, but some say it is short for \u201cMauna o W\u0101kea,\u201d after the Hawaiian sky father W\u0101kea<\/a>. In any case, it\u2019s a sacred spot, home to several Hawaiian gods and numerous family burial grounds. For thousands of years, pilgrims have been drawn to its slopes, seeking wisdom and connection with otherworldly forces.<\/p>\n

Mauna Kea is also where native Hawaiians learn about their traditional cosmological model of the universe. A thousand years ago, Pisciotta\u2019s people were circumnavigating the Pacific, relying heavily on the stars as their guide. \u201cWe had an advanced system of navigation around the time of the birth of Christ,\u201d Pisciotta told me. \u201cA lot of that knowledge is derived from the mountain and the ceremonies we do there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Milky<\/a>

Milky Way from near the summit of Mauna Kea. Image Credit: Mark Ireland \/ Flickr<\/p><\/div>\n

Perhaps it\u2019s no surprise that a mountain which was has long been a seat of cosmic teachings now attracts scientists seeking to unravel the greatest celestial mysteries of all. Unsullied by city lights or air pollution, Mauna Kea\u2019s summit boasts some of the clearest skies in the world. For nearly fifty years<\/a>, astronomers have built observatories there; today, the mountain is home to 13 world-class telescopes. Astronomy on Mauna Kea is a boon to the University of Hawaii and brings substantial income<\/a> to the state.<\/p>\n

Prized by astronomers, revered by Hawaiian cultural practitioners, Mauna Kea now finds itself at the center of an ideological clash. To native Hawaiians, the mountain offers connection with everything sacred, and they don\u2019t want its natural majesty spoiled by anything. But to scientists trained according to secular Western principles, nature has no enchanted qualities: it\u2019s something to be reduced, analyzed, and explained.<\/p>\n

On Mauna Kea, Western logic is clear. \u201cTo move the TMT to another site would mean moving the TMT to an inferior site,\u201d Nick Suntzeff<\/a>, an astronomer at Texas A&M University, told Gizmodo in an email. For decades, Suntzeff has aided in site selection for Chilean telescopes, and he\u2019s has had to eliminate some exceptional summits because of their cultural heritage. \u201cThe northern hemisphere is different,\u201d he notes. \u201cThere are fewer sites that are outstanding. Mauna Kea is the best.\u201d<\/p>\n

The needs of astronomers on Mauna Kea have long held precedence over the wishes of those who would keep the mountain pristine. But in 2011, when Hawaii\u2019s Board of Land and Natural Resources issued a construction permit for the mountain\u2019s 14th observatory before Hawaiians could air their complaints in a court hearing, the seed was planted for an opposition movement that would change everything.<\/p>\n

A Telescope Steeped in Controversy<\/strong><\/p>\n

The TMT would be the largest telescope in the northern hemisphere by a wide margin, rivaled only by two other<\/a> massive scopes<\/a> currently under construction in Chile. Sponsored jointly<\/a> by Japan, China, the US, Canada, and India, and partially funded by nonprofits, the University of California and Caltech, the $1.4 billion<\/a> observatory is a tremendous international collaboration. As Swanner puts it, \u201cIt\u2019s big science at its biggest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Artist\u2019s<\/a>

Artist\u2019s concept of a Thirty Meter Telescope. Image Credit: TMT International Observatory<\/p><\/div>\n

This colossal investment will allow scientists to answer some equally big questions. The TMT\u2019s 30-meter wide primary mirror will peer up to 13 billion light years away, traversing deep space and time to reveal the birth of galaxies at the beginning of the universe. The scope will also be an asset for exoplanet researchers, as one of the first ground-based observatories powerful enough to catch light bouncing off the atmospheres of distant planets. In these faint planetary flickerings, astronomers will search for \u201cbiosignatures,\u201d mixtures of chemicals like oxygen and methane that could indicate alien biology.<\/p>\n

So the TMT may help us answer the most profound questions about the place of the human species in the universe. But that knowledge would come at a price\u2014the violation of a place held sacred by a people whose values have been overridden by Western colonial interests for more than a century.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t simply a native beliefs versus science narrative,\u201d Swanner said. \u201cIt is more accurately a natives versus settlers narrative.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have an outside group coming in and making decisions about what should be done with native land without hearing native voices,\u201d she continued. \u201cThat is very disturbing for cultural practitioners who don\u2019t want to see themselves as a dispossessed people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tensions over the construction of the TMT came to a head in October 2014, when a group of protestors halted the telescope\u2019s groundbreaking ceremony<\/a> by blocking its access road. In April<\/a>, 300 protestors gathered on the mountain to block the TMT\u2019s construction once again. Several dozen were arrested. On June 24th over 700 protestors gathered on the mountain, pushing boulders into the TMT access road and forcing construction crews to retreat<\/a>. By that time, opposition to the telescope had gone viral on social media, and the Hawaiian cause was garnering allies across the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cSocial media is playing a role I haven\u2019t seen before,\u201d Swanner said. \u201cIt is making the people in small groups on the mountain feel connected\u2014feel that they are taking a stand with other groups around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Protestors<\/a>

Protestors opposed to the TMT gather outside the Hawaiian Legislature on April 21st, 2015. Image Credit: AP Photo\/Cathy Bussewitz<\/p><\/div>\n

There have been attempts at reconciliation. Since 2010, TMT astronomers have held hundreds of \u201ctalk story\u201d sessions, community meetings to share and discuss their work with the public. Plans to decommission older observatories are being accelerated, with governor David Ige vowing to remove at least three <\/a>of the mountain\u2019s existing telescopes by the time the TMT is operational in 2024. Just last month, the University of Hawaii confirmed that the TMT site is the last new area on the mountain<\/a> that will ever be developed for astronomy.<\/p>\n

But to many activists, these gestures are too little, too late. Moreover, they don\u2019t address the real problem with the TMT: it\u2019s utterly enormous. \u201cThe TMT will be very large and limit our ability to do ceremonies that need to see the star alignment,\u201d Pisciotta explained. \u201cAstronomy is permitted on Mauna Kea if and only if it can meet the strict regularly rules\u2014and they aren\u2019t doing that.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why the Mauna Kea Anaina Hou decided to take legal action. While Pisciotta would argue that the TMT is industrial development that violates the rules of Mauna Kea as a state-designated conservation district, the case that ended up in the Supreme Court was one of due process. Specifically, the court had to decide whether Hawaii\u2019s Board of Land and Natural Resources was right to issue a construction permit for the TMT before a contested case hearing was held. It wasn\u2019t. Last Wednesday, the TMT\u2019s permit was ruled invalid<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cQuite simply, the Board put the cart before the horse when it issued the permit,\u201d the court decision reads. \u201cAccordingly, the permit cannot stand.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Last week\u2019s ruling was a major victory for the TMT\u2019s opponents. But in light of everything that\u2019s been invested in the observatory, it\u2019s hard to imagine that the astronomy community will just give up. The telescope\u2019s components continue to be built on schedule at facilities worldwide. To proceed with construction, the TMT will have to acquire a new permit from the board.<\/p>\n

\u201cTMT will follow the process set forth by the state, as we always have,\u201d TMT\u2019s chairman Henry Yang said in a statement<\/a>. \u201cWe are assessing our next steps on the way forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

But if the TMT didn\u2019t face an uphill battle with the Board of Land and Natural Resources before, it certainly does now.<\/p>\n

\"UK<\/a>

UK Infrared Telescope at the summit of Mauna Kea. Image Credit: Robert Linsdell \/ Flickr<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cThe permitting process should be tougher for them now, because there are more people who are publicly opposed, but also, because everyone is on their guard,\u201d Jonathan Osorio, a history professor at University of Hawaii at Manoa told Gizmodo. \u201cAll of the people who made the decision to grant a license before holding the fair hearing will not be doing that this time around.\u201d<\/p>\n

Perhaps the most optimistic view is that this ruling becomes a watershed moment for astronomy, one where an open and honest dialogue between scientists and cultural practitioners begins to emerge. \u201cI think that if we have honest dialogue, there might be some [compromise] that can be found,\u201d Pisciotta said. \u201cSomething that maybe we didn\u2019t think of before.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut,\u201d she continued, \u201cthey have to be open to the fundamental question of should [astronomy] be allowed at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

To some astronomers, the price of building another observatory on Mauna Kea if an accord cannot be reached is simply too great. \u201cTo me, as a New Zealander, Native Hawaiian objections to astronomy on Mauna Kea look very similar to deeply held M\u0101ori positions on the use of the natural environment, which reflects the two cultures common Polynesian roots,\u201d astrophysicist Richard Easther of the University of Auckland told Gizmodo in an email. \u201cI hope that this latest development is an opportunity for dialogue and understanding, not just litigation\u2014I wouldn\u2019t want to see the TMT built at the end of a bitterly contested process.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even to cultural practitioners who oppose the observatory, this isn\u2019t a black-and-white issue. Many native Hawaiians work closely with astronomers\u2014Pisciotta herself was a telescope operator for over a decade. Time and again, she\u2019s forced to defend her people against accusations that they\u2019re anti-science. \u201cIf you wanted to build a hospital up there, we would still fight you\u2014but it doesn\u2019t mean we\u2019re against healthcare,\u201d Pisciotta said. \u201cThis is a land use issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Will astronomy and spirituality one day co-exist in peace on Mauna Kea? It\u2019s impossible to say at this point. When asking himself that question, Suntzeff recalls a conversation he had about Mauna Kea with an older Hawaiian woman in the early 1980s.<\/p>\n

\u201cI asked her what she felt about the observatory,\u201d he said. \u201cWhat she answered was at first strange to me. She told me that the problem with Mauna Kea is that on top of the mountain, people are too close to God. I leave it to you to put your own meaning on what she said, but I think that is wisest insight to the mountain I have heard.\u201d<\/p>\n

Go to Original \u2013 gizmodo.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

7 Dec 2015 – Last week, Hawaii\u2019s Supreme Court voided a construction permit for the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT), a $1.4 billion observatory that would peer into distant corners of our universe and back in time, exploring new cosmic landscapes with a resolution twelve times sharper than that of Hubble.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56,221,145],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67462","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-asia-pacific","category-indigenous-rights","category-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67462","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67462"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67462\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67462"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67462"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67462"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}