This is the Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea in Hawaii

This is the Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea in Hawaii

Or rather, this is what it will look like once it's completed. The telescope is nearly three times larger than the biggest telescope currently on Earth. Once operational, we'll be able to see farther back in the universe's past than ever before. However...

Protests have forced Hawaii's governor to halt construction.

These protesters have been making many false claims to try to prevent the Thirty Meter telescope from ever happening. Among the false claims: The telescope will poison Hawaii's aquifer beneath Mauna Kea (it won't), Native Hawaiians weren't consulted (they were, and they approved), The legal process wasn't followed (it was).

The protesters want to make this a worldwide issue.

Which I'm ok with. But I want the public to know the facts, not the misinformation the protesters are spreading. The fact is this is public land, leased by the state to the University of Hawaii, paid for by the taxpayers. The lease specifically designates the 525 acres as land for observatories. There are no environmental hazards, as shown in the Environmental Impact Statement. You all deserve to know the facts. *Edit* Environmental Impact Survey: http://dlnr.hawaii.gov/occl/files/2013/08/2010-05-08-HA-FEIS-Thirty-Meter-Telescope-Vol2.pdf Overview of Lease: http://www.ulukau.org/elib/collect/mauna/index/assoc/D0.dir/doc652.pdf