Pros And Cons Of Hawaii's Telescope

Hawaii's Telescope Controversy

Rising more than 6 miles from the seabed floor, Mauna Kea is the tallest summit in the world. To native Hawaiians, the dormant volcano is the most sacred land in the entire Pacific. Considered a temple and a house of worship, native Hawaiians believed the gods created Mauna Kea for them to ascend to the heavens.

To scientists, the mountaintop is the best location in the world to observe the stars and study the origins of our universe. So no wonder the decision to build Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT), biggest telescope in the world, became a big conflict between Hawaiian culture and science.

TMT has to be built, because it would give astronomers an excess to unique and valuable knowledge about universe, and benefit

Coming back to the topic of the telescope, TMT, built atop the towering volcano, will use adaptive optics, enabling the telescope to correct for the blurring that usually occurs as a result of the Earth's atmosphere. It will allow scientists from all over the globe to capture what they hope will be the sharpest images yet of our universe. Michael Bolte, a professor of astronomy and associate director for TMT, supports the idea of building TMT because of the uniqueness of the place, where the telescope was planned to be established:"We looked at other sites for TMT and they were good. However, Mauna Kea is better — much better. You don't have a clearer view into the cosmos from anywhere else in the world."

Other expert Paul Coleman, a professor of astronomy at the University of Hawaii, and Native Hawaiian, also understands how crucial the venture is to exploring the universe. If finished, the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT), with a 98-foot-wide primary mirror, will be the largest optical-light observatory ever built. Considering this, Coleman claims: "You don't have a clearer view into the cosmos from anywhere else in the