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Create a "new moon" up to eight times brighter than our natural satellite. A luminous balloon made by the man who illuminates an entire city and is visible from other parts of the country and from abroad.
This is the goal of the Chengdu Aerospace Research Institute, one of the three most populous cities in the world. West of China.
The planned date for placing this "artificial moon" in orbit in space is 2020, reported the official newspaper of the Communist Party of China of the People's Daily .
The goal is " save money to the city by eliminating the need for street lights, because we expect that this artificial star can illuminate an area up to 80 kilometers in diameter, "says the report. ] Little is known about its height and size, nor about the financing of the project, but the idea is to reflect the sunlight through wings that would work like solar panels.
Wu Chunfeng, chairman of the organization responsible for the project, said at a conference in Chengdu on October 10 that if the launch ended, there would be three more in 2022 .
According to Chunfeng, this system could save the city up to $ 170 million in electricity costs.
The specialist also said that the "moon" could also help rescue relief during natural disasters.
"It has been developing for several years
But what impact could a giant mirror have on space?
Can it affect the flora and fauna of the Earth that depend on nocturnal cycles? And plants, unusual to excess light?
Several surveys have shown that "many animals are very sensitive to the light and phases of the Moon "For example, nocturnal owls communicate with the feathers in the throat and scientists have discovered that their activity increases during the full moon, Live Science .
when it is clearer
And in the Great Barrier Reef Corals aus Traliens and hundreds of coral species simultaneously release their eggs and sperm during a major annual event related to the brightness of the moon.
However, Kang Weimin of the Aerospace School of Harbin Institute of Technology, China, said the light ar The "moon" that they intend to build will be "similar to the glow" of the evening "and will not affect the animal routines".
It will be designed to complete the Earth's natural satellite, said the scientific president
The Russian precedent [19659016Thisisnotthefirsttimethatacityintendstoimitatethefunctionofthemoon
Russia He presented a similar project in the early 90s. It was a "space mirror" orbiting space producing a light "equivalent to three to five full moons " explained the newspaper. American The New York Times .
Russia's idea was that its system covers an area about 5 kilometers in diameter, illuminating remote areas of Siberia and western Russia near the Arctic Circle.
The experiment envisaged the development of several mirrors of different sizes, controlled from the Russian space station. But he never succeeds.
In February 1993, a "mirror" 20 meters long was placed by a satellite "proving that the idea worked well". The problem with which the scientists did not count was that the clouds prevented to see the light that projected.
Two hours later, it was destroyed in the Earth's atmosphere. The project was completely canceled in 1999 when a new 25-meter mirror was connected to an antenna during launch tests.
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