It is hard to overestimate the level of ignorance and misinformation demonstrated by WHT columnist Denis Gregory in his Aug 1 WHT column about TMT. It is an all out rant against things he considers too big and praising the TMT protester blockade in particular.
He calls it a “Hawaiian Woodstock” like a big party with the Hawaiians and Hawaiian sympathizers blocking the road to Maunakea. Somehow, it seems to be because of all the injustice the Hawaiians have endured over the past 60 years since Statehood. Apparently, stopping TMT is a means of how these perceived injustices are going to be mitigated. Mr. Gregory urges the protesters on with a totally erroneous characterization of the TMT project. While the protesters activities are totally illegal, law enforcement is unable or unwilling to enforce the law and has been just standing by watching.
Mr. Gregory and the protesters say they are not against science and the TMT can just go to the Canary Islands to do their work and everyone would be happy. That is simply not true. Scientifically and logistically, Maunakea is far superior to the Spanish site and the science would be adversely affected in Spain. Spain is not equal to Maunakea in many ways but the most important is the altitude and location of Maunakea is far better.
Mr. Gregory claims that the protesters have one wish “to save our island home” as if the TMT would somehow destroy our home. He doesn’t say how TMT would destroy our homes. It is the same gross hyperbole throughout his column that he uses to support his wish to get rid of TMT. He compares TMT to superferries and spaceports and doesn’t understand the value of the very large mirror like TMT in a telescope. He claims the added traffic will tear up Maunakea’s steep gravel roads.
He rambles on about how big the telescope is that it will create traffic jams. He writes that it would look like “a big dark knob four times higher than all the observatories around that would look like little white mushrooms sprouting around it.”
The truth is that while TMT will be 180 feet tall, Subaru is 140 feet and Keck around 100 feet. TMT will be located well below the other telescopes with no adjacent “mushrooms.” It will only be visible from the northwest part of the island and will be totally dominated by the massive mountain itself so it will not somehow spoil anyone’s view.
Mr. Gregory again shows his lack of knowledge about TMT when he writes “how they will get 100 foot wide glass up that thin bumpy road?” He says “its a total mystery.”
Actually, the TMT mirror is assembled into a very large mosaic with 1.4 meter mirror segments similar to Keck mirror technology. I could almost put one of those in the trunk of my car. As for the road, the upper seven miles is paved. Apparently, Mr. Gregory has never been there and is poorly informed on many aspects of TMT.
The technology for TMT was developed in the USA and demonstrated in Hawaii with the Keck telescopes. For those of us who consider Hawaii to be an important part of the USA, and not an independent kingdom, let’s keep TMT here. It will be a tremendous scientific instrument for generations to come and ultimately a source of pride to the Big Island when fully operational. Mr. Gregory is totally wrong is his assessment of TMT.
Gerald Smith is a resident of Waimea.