The thirty-meter telescope, apparently, will never be built

Protesters on the access road

The project of the largest optical instrument on Earth, a thirty-meter telescope, which was supposed to unfold on the Mauna Kea mountain, returned to the very beginning of its difficult path. On Thursday, a judge in the Supreme Court of Hawaii ruled that the project organizers would need to re-collect all permits for its construction.

The trial was initiated by a group of religious citizens, residents of the island of Hawaii, on which is located the volcano Mauna Kea. A group of activists of Sacred Mauna Kea opposes the construction, claiming that it will turn into a “desecration” of their sacred mountain. The plaintiffs accused the Hawaiian Land Resources Bureau [BLNR] of issuing a building permit without being able to protest against it.
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Hawaiians believe that Mauna Kea is a symbolic navel of the island, connected to the heavens, where the souls of their ancestors are located, and human activity cannot be applied to it and the building cannot be developed on it. Despite this, since 1964, when a road was laid on the mountain, eleven countries had somehow built thirteen different telescopes on the mountain.

The unique properties of the mountain and its convenient location favor the installation of astronomical equipment on its top. Unfortunately, even in the 21st century, religion and superstition can quite successfully resist scientific and technological progress.

Mauna Kea was chosen as the site for the construction of a telescope back in 2009. In 2011, the committee received all necessary permits from the BLNR, but they were challenged in court. Only in 2013, all disputes seemed to be resolved. In 2014, it was solemnly announced the start of construction. However, the builders were faced with protests by local religious activists, even reaching the blocking of the road leading to the construction site. In December 2015, the construction permit was withdrawn , and last week this decision was confirmed by the State Supreme Court.