I cannot help but respond to Mal Johnson’s April 16 letter concerning the value of knowledge and in favor of the Haleakala proposed astronomy facility.
I am one who has spent all of my adult life in the beautiful quest for that which is yet unknown and agree that this pursuit borders on the sacred. I am also painfully aware of the trend of conversion of the once rounded and most assuredly sacred pu’u of uppermost Haleakala into a jumble of white blocky buildings.The rocky summit of Haleakala, one of the highest mountains in Oceania, may seem like a lifeless land of stone, but is actually alive with unique Hawaiian plants and animals.
The proposed Advanced Technology Solar Telescope would easily be the largest of its type. I am told the facility would be over 140 feet tall, taller than the county building in Wailuku. The mark this monolith would make on Maui would be significant and irrevocable. Though Haleakala was the preferred site for this facility, other sites were identified as acceptable. I suggest that these options be pursued.
The quest for knowledge is beautiful but its demands must be weighed against the other sacred and beautiful things of the limited area of Maui, aspects of our Hawaiian culture, the lives of unique native plants and animals and the grace of the clean lines of Haleakala’s ethereal high Pacific mountain viewscapes.
Art Medeiros
Makawao
