Aloha e nā hoa aloha ‘āina,

Greetings from KAHEA to you in this busy season! We’re writing to you with a simple way to express to the National Science Foundation (yet again!) that a strong and fierce community continues to stand, in protection of Mauna Kea, against the construction of the Thirty-Meter Telescope (TMT). Appearing in genealogical chants, the relationships between Mauna Kea and Kanaka Maoli go back to time immemorial. Some in our hui have been defending Mauna Kea for decades, and we have been specifically opposing the TMT for the last 15 years – the NSF needs to know that we are still here and not going anywhere!

At the end of February 2024, the National Science Board (NSB) — which oversees the NSF — announced that it will fund only one of two Extremely Large Telescopes (ELT): either the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) in Chile, or the TMT on either Mauna Kea or La Palma in the Canary Islands. Folks might recall that in 2018, the TMT and GMT proposed a partnership (called US-ELTP) to give US researchers access to an ELT in each hemisphere – TMT in the north and GMT in the south. Had it been funded, the US-ELTP would have gobbled up 80% of the NSF budget for major projects. However, the February 2024 announcement included a funding cap of $1.6 billion, meaning that the two projects will not move forward as the US-ELT partnership. Instead, the GMT and TMT projects will, once again, be rivals competing for the same pot of funding. For more of this back story and the current funding levels of each project, check out this article in Science Magazine which identifies the GMT, as the “lower risk choice,” because it is “smaller and cheaper,” and already under construction. TMT claims to have also begun construction on Mauna Kea — an assertion we have been challenging since 2021. 

On May 1-2, 2024, the National Science Foundation board will meet and decide whether to fund construction of either the TMT or the GMT. It is important for us to affirm our commitments to protect Mauna Kea as the NSF board considers their options.

Thousands of people over the years have mobilized to protect Mauna Kea from further industrial development, including the TMT. Over 1,338 unique supporters have already taken action, sending 5,352 letters to the NSF Board, the NSF Director, and the NSF Board Chair and Vice Chair! Click this link to add your voice today and tell the NSF that Mauna Kea is still sacred and remind them that we remain vigilant and committed.