Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Experts are warning that there appears to be nowhere left on Earth where astronomers can view the stars and planets without light pollution caused by satellites.
Sam Lawler, an associate professor at the University of Regina, says the darkness that astronomers and stargazers rely on is becoming harder to find due to the increase in "very reflective" satellites being sent into low orbit.
"The light pollution from satellites is global -- there's nowhere that you can get away from it," Lawler told CTV's Your Morning on Friday.
Lawler said the satellites causing the most recent problems are those launched by Elon Musk's SpaceX as part of its Starlink internet service.
"Just a few satellites is not a problem, but when all of a sudden there are thousands or tens of thousands of them reflecting sunlight, then that starts to change the way the night sky looks and we're right on the threshold of that," Lawler said.
Lawler said the number of low-flying satellites has "increased dramatically" in the last year, "almost entirely due to Starlink launches."
Lawler, who studies Kuiper Belt objects such as the planet Pluto, said these objects are 15 million times fainter than the Starlink satellites, hampering hers and other astronomers' work.
"They're launching more satellites every two to three weeks [in] batches of 60, so they want to get to 42,000 satellites when currently there's only a few thousand," she said.
"So this will very much change the way the night sky looks."
According to a study published in March, researchers with the Royal Astronomical Society found that the number of objects orbiting Earth, including satellites and space debris, could elevate the overall brightness of the night sky by more than 10 per cent above natural light levels across the majority of planet.
The study reported that this would exceed a threshold that astronomers set more than 40 years ago for considering a location "light polluted."
A 2016 study also reported that 80 per cent of North Americans and 60 per cent of Europeans can no longer see the glowing band of the Milky Way because of the impact of artificial lighting.
Lawler acknowledged that there are "significant benefits" to these satellites, including internet access for those in remote communities. However, she said people in remote areas also have a "very good view of the night sky," and will have to give that up in return.
To help tackle the issue and protect the night sky, Lawler says there needs to be international regulation of space.
"We need to recognize that low Earth orbit is an environment that's intimately connected to our atmosphere, so that has to happen at the international level," Lawler said.
Lawler said Canada can also aid in reducing light pollution by implementing regulations that require communication services to take into account the negative impacts of satellites.
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.