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posted by martyb on Tuesday November 01 2016, @10:15AM   Printer-friendly
from the change-in-scope dept.

The board of governors for the Thirty-Meter Telescope has chosen an alternate site for construction that could allow it to cut its losses in Mauna Kea:

The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) could move to La Palma, in Spain's Canary Islands, if opposition from Native Hawaiians prevents the next-generation observatory from being built atop the Hawaiian mountain of Mauna Kea as planned.

The decision, announced on 31 October by the TMT International Observatory's board of governors, creates an alternative path forward for the troubled mega-telescope. Its opponents blocked access to the Mauna Kea site in April 2015, halting construction, although work on the telescope's components continues at sites around the world. Native Hawaiians regard the decision to build the TMT on Mauna Kea as the continued desecration of a sacred mountaintop that hosts 13 other telescopes, some of which are being decommissioned.

In December, Hawaii's state supreme court nullified the permit that would have allowed the TMT to proceed. A fresh round of hearings began this month, with TMT officials seeking a new permit from the state's Bureau of Land and Natural Resources.

Previously:
Thirty Meter Telescope Considering Move as Hawaii Officials Open Hearing
Hawaiian Court Revokes Permit for Construction of Thirty-Meter-Telescope
Protests Temporarily Halt Thirty-Meter Telescope's Construction in Hawaii


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  • (Score: 2) by weeds on Tuesday November 01 2016, @06:41PM

    by weeds (611) on Tuesday November 01 2016, @06:41PM (#421345) Journal

    So you admit to believing in nonsense.

    Not so sure about your reading comprehension skills.

    And if you bother to actually read up on the issue, it is entirely owing to the fact that this is a sacred place.
    Try this: http://www.mauna-a-wakea.info/maunakea/F2_whitemountain.html [mauna-a-wakea.info]
    A Sample:

    In our story of creation, Wakea is the broad expanse, the sky father, partner to Papahanaumoku, earth mother, who gave birth to the islands. Hawai’i island is their hiapo, or eldest child. And Mauna Kea is that child’s piko, or navel. Because of its place in our genealogies, Mauna Kea is a kupuna, an ancestor.

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   2  
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 01 2016, @07:30PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 01 2016, @07:30PM (#421365)

    > Not so sure about your reading comprehension skills.

    I'm not so sure about your snark comprehension skills.

    > And if you bother to actually read up on the issue, it is entirely owing to the fact that this is a sacred place.

    Surprise, know-it-all geek is reductive. Never saw that before!

    Yes its religious significance is the reason its important to the people, but that's not the reason they get a say in its use. They get a say in its use because that's one of the few rights the US government granted to them after the land was taken from their ancestors. If someone wants to take your house because they think they have a better use for it, it does not really matter why your house is important to you, because its your goddamn house!

    • (Score: 2) by weeds on Tuesday November 01 2016, @08:39PM

      by weeds (611) on Tuesday November 01 2016, @08:39PM (#421391) Journal

      You can substitute any reason you want for why they should say no to a telescope, but it's not the reason they gave. You can draw in anything you want, that doesn't change the reason they gave for blocking the project.
      My apologies for the ad-hominem comments. I try to stay away from those. Indeed snark detection is a low priority for me as is dialog with AC. Enjoy.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 01 2016, @08:55PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 01 2016, @08:55PM (#421396)

        > You can substitute any reason you want for why they should say no to a telescope,

        You are right, they can substitute any damn reason they please because its their right to decide.

        Its like you have decided to aggressively miss the point.

        • (Score: 2) by weeds on Wednesday November 02 2016, @11:15AM

          by weeds (611) on Wednesday November 02 2016, @11:15AM (#421586) Journal

          OK, I think that's the root of it isn't it?
          "It will be bad for tourism", "It will impact the water supply", "It will damage the local ecology" All well considered reasons. Entry points to a dialog, possible to discuss, refute, or potentially compromise.
          "No, because it's my mountain and I said so." is a position that is lacking.