Spain will get giant telescope if Hawaii doesn’t, group says

HONOLULU — An agreement has been reached for a giant telescope to be built in Spain’s Canary Islands if it cannot be put atop a Hawaii mountain.

Telescope builder TMT International Observatory says Hawaii’s Mauna Kea remains the preferred location for the $1.4 billion Thirty Meter Telescope.

But some Native Hawaiians are fighting to keep the telescope off a mountain they consider sacred.

Hawaii’s Supreme Court invalidated the project’s construction permit, forcing long-running hearings for a new one. It’s unclear when a decision will be made.