Re: OT: Surely there's an SF story with this.....

On 30/08/24 06:07, Cryptoengineer wrote:

Reflect Orbital
 
https://www.reflectorbital.com/lighting
 
is proposing to launch a fleet of orbital mirrors to provide lighting
to nighttime locations on the Earth.
 
They claim they will be able to light up a 5km diameter circle for
4 minutes. They're accepting reservations, but I can't find any
pricing. They expect to start in Q4 2025.
 
I'm *extremely* skeptical. To be even as bright as moonlight,
the mirror would have to appear 1/7 the area of the Moon in
the sky.
 
I can't think of a use case for 4 minutes of light, but they
also talk about using it to power up solar panel systems at
night, which makes no sense.
 
I think its either an art project, or some kind of scam to
fleece investors who are bad at math.
 
Still, very stfnal.
 
pt

I found the website fascinating including the interesting backgrounds of
the principals. (Keep us informed if you learn more, please.)
The SF story I am reminded of is of a far smaller scale about the
unfortunate soccer referee choosing principle to the game over loyalty
to the crowd but I can't remember the title nor author.