Former Google CEO Plans To Singlehandedly Fund a Hubble Telescope Replacement (arstechnica.com)
- Reference: 0180549293
- News link: https://science.slashdot.org/story/26/01/08/1832238/former-google-ceo-plans-to-singlehandedly-fund-a-hubble-telescope-replacement
- Source link: https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/01/eric-schmidt-will-massively-invest-in-private-telescopes-including-hubble-replacement/
> Prior to World War II the vast majority of telescopes built around the world were funded by wealthy people with an interest in the heavens above.
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> However, after the war, two significant developments in the mid-20th century caused the burden of funding large astronomical instruments to largely shift to the government and academic institutions. First, as mirrors became larger and larger to see deeper into the universe, their costs grew exponentially. And then, with the advent of spaceflight, the expense of space-based telescopes expanded even further.
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> But now the tide may be turning again.
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> On Wednesday evening, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and his wife, Wendy, announced a major investment in not just one telescope project, but four. Each of these new telescopes brings a novel capability online; however, the most intriguing new instrument is a space-based telescope named Lazuli. This spacecraft, if successfully launched and deployed, would offer astronomers a more capable and modern version of the Hubble Space Telescope, which is now three decades old.
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> A billionaire with a keen interest in science and technology, Schmidt and his wife did not disclose the size of his investment in the four telescopes, which collectively will be known as the Schmidt Observatory System. However, it likely is worth half a billion dollars, at a minimum.
[1] https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/01/eric-schmidt-will-massively-invest-in-private-telescopes-including-hubble-replacement/
Good. (Score:3, Informative)
Just plain good. Even better if operations also don't depend on government funding.
This is depoliticized pure science.
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Didn't you hear, science is woke and gay now.
Re: Good. (Score:2)
So is Jesus.
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(I bet that shrug won't render correctly...)
Re: (Score:1, Troll)
"Depoliticized"? I think the politics of this enterprise may be firmly placed in the camp of whatever political system makes it possible for an individual to accumulate more wealth than a major department of the government dedicated to that same enterprise.
Hint: It rhymes with "oh malarkey".
Re: Good. (Score:3, Informative)
"Oligarchy" means Eric Schmidt doesn't stand for election or Senate approval but still gets to be part of the club that dictates how the force of the state is employed against (or for) its citizens.
Oligarchy doesn't mean Eric Schmidt is rich enough to pay for a space telescope.
Re: (Score:2)
For a longer moment than I care to admit, I thought you were alluding to "woke" space exploration.
Re: (Score:2)
Does astronomy have a problem with politicization?
So (Score:1)
1/106 of his net worth. Like me splurging on a high end GPU.
Re: (Score:3)
net worth is not quite exactly how much money he actually has.
If it's all stock shit for example, it's not real money, because for example if he tried to cash it out, no one would be able to actually pay that much cash, he would be able to trade with different stocks etc..
I imagine even getting a billion out of it is already a pain.
shove it up your delta-vee (Score:1)
Why not just have Gemini, or whatever you're calling yours, generate the pictures instead? It'd save a lot of money over a spaceborne telescope!
Well, maybe it'd save a LITTLE money.
Schmidt Schmidt projector (Score:5, Funny)
Don't believe this "telescope" stuff. He's going to project ads onto the Moon.
totally applaud this (Score:4, Insightful)
I really hope that this actually happens. This should be the model for what the new class of trillionaires does with their money. Last century, the ultrawealthy would fund universities, libraries, and stuff like that. Those things had a lasting positive effect. This century, the trillionaires have been trying various other forms of charity (Gates foundation, Scot foundation, etc. etc.) but the return to society has been pretty dismal, in my opinion. This is gonna get me downmodded, but the hard truth is that drilling a few dozen wells in Africa doesn't do much good when various armies run through the area every 10 years and ethnically cleanse every moving object larger than a shrew. Same goes for malaria vaccines, unfortunately. The activities are very noble everybody feels good about them, but they completely fail to address the real problems.
Putting a scientific instrument into space that provides 30 years of state-of-the-art data? At the very least, it's worth trying as something that could have a larger, lasting positive effect.
Re: (Score:2)
Wait, you're saying entities like the Gates foundation that attempt to get the most bang for their buck in terms of improving the quality of life for impoverished people have a dismal return to society and completely fail to address real problems. And some billionaire privately funding another space telescope is precisely what society really needs.
I have to be misreading what you wrote. It only makes sense if you don't care at all about the sorts of people the Gates foundation attempts to help.
Singlehandedly? (Score:1)
"Former Google CEO Plans To Singlehandedly Fund a Hubble Telescope Replacement "
Half a billion probably isn't going to fund a Hubble replacement, never mind four of them. Private funding for things like this aren't that uncommon either. Vera Rubin's mirror was at least partially privately funded.
There already is something called that (Score:3)
[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schmidt%E2%80%93Cassegrain_telescope
$500M.. right.. (Score:2)
I have a bridge to sell you, Eric.
RAH (Score:2)
"space-based telescope named Lazuli "
Named after one of the female clones of Lazarus Long ?
Good (Score:1)
A privately-funded telescope may have less bureaucratic barriers than something controlled by NASA/Cal Tech.