The world's largest telescope could be moved to the Canary Islands in Spain located in the Atlantic Ocean as opposed to its original site in Hawaii due to native Hawaiians condemning its development since it is on sacred grounds.

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The Thirty Meter Telescope project, which costs US $1.4 billion, was originally planned to be nestled inside the Mauna Kea volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii.

However, locals and environmentalists have strongly opposed this massive construction as there are already 13 working telescopes on the volcano's summit, which is also holy land. Astronomers believe that this site is ideal to observe night skies and deep space since the atmosphere in this volcanic region is dry and crisp and most importantly, far away from light pollution from cities.

However, native Hawaiians say that this proposed site of the new telescope on the Big Island is also a spiritual burial ground and that this project can disturb their sacred lands.

 According to TMT International Observatory Board chairman, Henry Yang, the board decided to ultimately explore other potential sites for the telescope following this opposition.

The board finally decided on La Palma, which is the most western point of the Canary Islands off the coast of Morocco, as their primary alternative from Hawaii.

This decision to choose the Canary Islands is a major development in the land dispute, almost a year after the Hawaii Supreme Court blocked the roads towards the telescope construction site on the Big Island.

The court decided upon this when local state officials immediately issued a building permit without organizing a trial to hear the complaints of the native Hawaiians and environmentalists.

The Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources began a new series of hearings on October 20, which will last for around seven weeks where a judge will issue a recommendation to the state Board of Land and Natural Resources.

Despite all this, the Big Island is still the main choice for the telescope site, and scientists will continue their massive efforts to gain approval in Hawaii.