The California-based tech company plans to send two satellites into space this year.Image: reddit
July 18, 2026, 2:50 p.mJuly 18, 2026, 3:07 p.m
“We are shaping the future of sunlight” – these are the words the US start-up Reflect Orbital uses to promote its project. The company wants to use thousands of space mirrors to reflect sunlight onto the earth and thus be able to illuminate large areas in the dark. Sunshine at the push of a button, so to speak, night becomes day whenever and wherever people want it.
What sounds like science fiction is set to be tested with the first test satellites this year. The project has now overcome a crucial hurdle for the implementation of the project. The US telecommunications authority FCC has given the company permission to launch the first test satellites into orbit. as the German tech magazine Heise reports. This despite considerable resistance from environmental scientists and astronomers.
The first two test satellites are intended to illuminate an area the size of an airport for around five minutes with the brightness of a full moon night. In the long term, the company wants to gradually expand its technology: by 2030, thousands of satellites should be able to illuminate limited areas as bright as day for several minutes. Five years later, the Californian company wants to have 50,000 satellites in orbit around the Earth. These should be able to illuminate areas as bright as day for several hours or to permanently generate a light intensity comparable to the interior lighting of buildings.
The US tech company plans to put tens of thousands of satellites into orbit over the next nine years. Image: screenshot reflect orbital
“Sunlight is the new oil” – technology should be versatile
The tech company then wants to sell the sunlight reflected onto the earth to customers all over the world. The founder and CEO of Reflect Orbital, Ben Nowack, sees great market potential, especially among solar companies. In a previous post on X, he wrote: “We believe sunlight is the new oil and space is ready to support energy infrastructure.”
According to Reflect Orbital, by extending the solar radiation, the energy production of solar systems can be increased even after sunset. However, the company presents other scenarios in which the technology will be used in the future. In the future, the beam of light, which is up to five kilometers wide, could be used in disaster areas, for example, to support rescue measures at night. The company sees further possible applications in agriculture, industry and the military sector.
Reflect Orbital sees various possible uses for its own technology.Image: screenshot reflectorbital
Researchers warn of significant impacts of the technology
The US tech company’s plans are ringing alarm bells for a large number of scientists. As early as 2025, over 1,000 researchers have publicly spoken out against the plans. They point out that the mirror satellites could make astronomical observations more difficult or even impossible in the future, as these can only take place at night and in the dark.
In addition, amateur astronomers would run the risk of being blinded by the mirrors and thus injuring their eyes. Airplane pilots and automobile drivers would also be at risk of being distracted by the satellites. Environmentalists warn of the negative effects of additional light pollution on nocturnal wildlife and insects.
Regarding the criticism, CEO Ben Nowack points out that the company will be able to precisely control the light beam and thus limit it to certain areas. In a New York Times article Gaspar Bakos, an astronomer at Princeton University, contradicts this argument: “Light is inevitably scattered by particles in the air, and the glow of the beam could brighten the night sky several kilometers away.”
Authority declares itself not responsible
Ahead of the US Telecommunications Authority FCC’s decision, the American Astronomical Society (AAS) an appeal to the authorities, to refuse approval of the technology. The project would have long-term impacts on its own government-funded research, ecology and human health. The project would serve no public interest and lead to a waste of taxpayer money, as the specialist society wrote in a public letter to the authorities.
However, the FCC, which is responsible for operating commercial satellites, did not address the researchers’ concerns. The authority approved the first test run with two satellites, but an expansion of the program would have to be examined again separately.
The authority pointed out that it had only made a judgment regarding the use of radio frequencies and the prevention of space debris. What possible consequences the technology has for people, animals and research are not within the authority’s remit, it writes in its approval letter. (July)