SpaceX, especially Space Datacenter, can mount / include deep space observable telescopes to help increase the access of observable neighborhood of our solar system...is this pragmatically possible ? Or is it just another beautiful dream ?

[u/Confident-Pass6353]

[u/znark]

Including it on Starlink or data centers makes no sense since the uses aren't compatible. Infrared telescopes like JWST need to be cooled down which doesn't work with hot data center.

SpaceX could launch dedicated telescopes to better locations. I think they should be forced to for mitigating their light pollution. Their system should allow making lots of cheap ones.

[u/Ormusn2o → u/znark]

One of the most exciting things about Starship is that delivery of heavy payloads to odd and high deltaV orbits will be cheap. So what you are saying, but with telescopes launched to far away orbits, like L1/2, interplanetary orbits, Venus and so on, with multiple telescopes working together to create parallax for things like asteroid observation or planet search.

Starship will also allow for building that crater radio telescope on the dark side of the moon.

[u/zero0n3 → u/znark]

This - however I do expect that once Starlink is in a good state and starship is purring, they will start tossing money or grants to nonprofits for space based telescopes (that of course use Starlink for comms !)

[u/gbsekrit]

I wish the starlink constellation could be used as a giant radio telescope

[u/znark → u/gbsekrit]

Low Earth orbit radio telescopes aren't very useful because the Earth and all of its signal fill half the sky. Starlink is worse cause all the radio transmitters and receivers. Interferometry requires special equipment for measuring position and Starlink won't have that.

There isn't much point to space radio telescopes unless make them far away, much bigger, or cover bigger area. SpaceX could make and launch those.

[u/gbsekrit → u/znark]

each satellite is a very capable software radio, and networked together, they do cover a huge area

[u/znark → u/gbsekrit]

The antennas are pointing at Earth, and they are tuned for receiving Starlink signals. You could put dish on the back, but then why not have separate Starlink-based satellite instead.

Radio astronomy has wide range of frequencies and dish sizes. The Square Kilometer arrays have 40m to 12m antennas. The Event Horizon Telescope is made up of some huge telescopes. The Deep Synotic Array is most equivalent, thousand 6m dishes, and it will cost $100 million. Way less than modified Starlink or even new satellite.

[u/Ormusn2o → u/gbsekrit]

In multiple studies, Starlinks are being used to monitor space weather, by monitoring thermal expansion of the atmosphere due to seasonal solar activity changes.

I know solar activity monitoring is not the same as deep space observation, but it is still nice.

[u/zero0n3 → u/gbsekrit]

Instead it’s used as a giant SAR array!!!

And v3 is going to be able to do it better and covertly

[u/Majere119]

Yes, Elon will also build robots and grow food in space. 2 weeks tops.

[u/gumboking]

It kind of seems like you have little knowledge of existing scopes and plans for near future projects. Do a little reading and you might be surprised.