Russian Scientists Just Launched An “Artificial Star” That Could Threaten Astronomy

By: Jonathan O’Callaghan/IFL Science  A Russian Soyuz rocket has successfully launched a controversial satellite into orbit, which will become one of our brightest stars in a few days – and may hamper astronomical observations. The satellite is called Mayak, developed by Moscow State Mechanical Engineering University (MAMU) and funded with $30,000 through Russian crowd funding website Boomstarter. We first…