该公司提出的应用场景包括：在夜间为太阳能板供电以倍增发电量、延长农业生长季节以提高产量、取代路灯照明、延长工业作业时间，以及为搜救行动和大型活动提供照明。然而，文章作者指出，许多应用场景经不起推敲——植物与动物都有昼夜节律，人为改变光照时间可能扰乱授粉、害虫防治等生态过程，农业产量反而可能下降。
天文学家和环保人士对此计划提出严重质疑。美国天文学会警告镜面卫星可能损坏精密观测设备、干扰飞行员视线并造成永久性眼部伤害。欧洲南方天文台的研究显示，即使卫星未直接照射观测者，每颗卫星的亮度也堪比金星，五万颗卫星将使夜空亮度增加三到四倍。文章作者援引希腊神话中法厄同驾驭太阳马车的悲剧，警示人类试图控制太阳的野心可能带来灾难性后果，并批评联邦通讯委员会在发放许可时未考虑太空活动的环境影响。
Reflect Orbital, a startup founded by former SpaceX intern Ben Nowack and Tristan Semmelhack, plans to launch 50,000 mirrored satellites by 2035 to control and monetize sunlight. The company's first satellite, Eärendil-1, is named after a Tolkien character. These ultra-thin reflector panels would beam adjustable sunlight onto roughly three-mile-wide patches of Earth. The company has raised nearly $29 million, holds an estimated $187 million valuation, and received FCC approval for a demonstration launch.
Proposed applications include powering solar panels at night to potentially double global solar output, extending agricultural growing seasons, replacing streetlights, prolonging industrial working hours, and illuminating search-and-rescue operations. However, the columnist argues that many of these use cases are problematic. Plants and animals depend on circadian rhythms, and disrupting natural darkness could impair pollination, pest control by nocturnal creatures like bats, and overall crop development—potentially reducing rather than boosting yields.
Astronomers and environmental experts have raised serious objections. The American Astronomical Society warned of risks to sensitive equipment, pilot vision, and permanent eye damage from telescope use. Research from the European Southern Observatory showed each satellite would shine as brightly as Venus, and the full constellation would make the night sky three to four times brighter through atmospheric light scattering. The author draws parallels to the Greek myth of Phaethon—who lost control of the sun chariot with catastrophic results—and criticizes the FCC for not assessing the environmental impact of space activities before granting launch permits.