Startup Wants Orbital Mirrors to Illuminate Night Skies

Reflect Orbital's ambitious plan to deploy 50,000 mirrors faces major scientific and regulatory hurdles.

Published on Mar. 9, 2026

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Reflect Orbital, a startup based in Hawthorne, California, has ambitious plans to deploy a network of 50,000 orbital mirrors by 2035 to beam sunlight to the Earth's night side. The company has raised $28 million and filed FCC paperwork for its first prototype, but scientists are warning about the catastrophic consequences this could have on astronomy, aviation, and wildlife.

Why it matters

Reflect Orbital's plan to artificially illuminate the night sky raises serious concerns from the scientific community. Astronomers warn that the mirrors would essentially end ground-based astronomy by creating streaks across telescope images, while pilots face distraction risks and wildlife could have their circadian rhythms disrupted. The regulatory gap around assessing the environmental impacts of such a project is also a major issue.

The details

Reflect Orbital's prototype, called EARENDEL-1, is a dorm-fridge-sized mirror that unfolds into a 60-foot structure capable of illuminating a three-mile patch as bright as the full moon. However, the company's own math shows the energy returns barely justify the massive infrastructure investment, with each 180-foot production mirror delivering just 1/140,000th of midday sunlight across 18 square miles. Experts say that to achieve 20% of daytime solar intensity at a single location, you'd need over 3,000 satellites working together.

  • Reflect Orbital has filed FCC paperwork for its first prototype.
  • The company plans to deploy 50,000 orbital mirrors by 2035.

The players

Reflect Orbital

A startup based in Hawthorne, California that is developing a network of orbital mirrors to beam sunlight to the Earth's night side.

Robert Massey

Deputy executive director of the Royal Astronomical Society, who has warned that Reflect Orbital's plan would be "pretty catastrophic" for astronomy.

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What they’re saying

“From an astronomical perspective, that's pretty catastrophic.”

— Robert Massey, Deputy executive director, Royal Astronomical Society (Space.com)

What’s next

The FCC is currently reviewing Reflect Orbital's application for its first prototype, and the company will need to secure further regulatory approvals as it scales up its ambitious plans.

The takeaway

Reflect Orbital's plan to use orbital mirrors to illuminate the night sky faces significant scientific and regulatory hurdles. Experts warn that the project could have catastrophic consequences for astronomy, aviation, and wildlife, raising questions about whether the potential benefits justify the risks and costs.