Summer is here and that means one thing: summer road trips. And luckily, gas prices have been dropping just in time to plan an epic cross-country adventure.
27.05.2024 - 11:15 / forbes.com
A proposal by the U.S. Air Force to build new telescopes atop Haleakalā Volcano on Maui was met with strong community resistance this month, setting the stage for a significant controversy this summer that could result in reduced accessibility to Haleakalā National Park.
The proposed project calls for the construction of seven new telescopes atop Haleakalā, a volcanic mountain that makes up more than half the island and reaches a peak elevation of 10,023 feet.
At public hearings held earlier this month, community groups expressed strong resistance to the project, some going as far to say that they would take further action to prevent the construction.
A similar scenario played out on the Big Island in 2019. When plans to build a new telescope atop Mauna Kea were approved, community groups blocked the access road, preventing construction.
Those protests resulted in the formation of a new oversight board and, to this day, the new telescope has yet to be built (and is now in danger of losing funding).
A similar standoff on Maui could be on the way. And if so, it could end up restricting access to the summit area of Haleakalā National Park.
Technically, the existing Haleakalā Observatory, which consists of several telescopes that study Near Earth Objects, including comets and space debris, is not within the boundaries of Haleakalā National Park.
However, it might as well be in this scenario, because it is adjacent to/surrounded by the summit area of the national park and accessed by the same road. If access to the observatory area is cut off via a roadblock, so too would access to the summit area, a popular recreation area with lookouts, hiking trails, and a visitor center.
Community groups that oppose the new proposal take issue with construction atop Haleakalā because it is a sacred place in Hawaiian culture - disrupting its natural state contributes to its desecration. Mismanagement of the current telescopes already in Hawaiʻi has also led to environmental concerns.
Scientists are hopeful for the project because the new telescopes would enhance their ability to monitor the night sky. Some say that such astronomical research continues the Polynesian tradition of observing the night sky (Polynesian voyagers were master navigators who explored the Pacific using the sky as their map). Hawaiʻi’s location in the middle of the Pacific and its high elevations make it ideal for consistent nighttime observation.
Public comment on the project, which is known as the AMOS STAR, will go through June 7th during the “scoping” period. After, we should have a clearer picture of how, if, and when the Air Force plans to move forward with the project.
Summer is here and that means one thing: summer road trips. And luckily, gas prices have been dropping just in time to plan an epic cross-country adventure.
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