Re: Would something like an temporary protective bubble help?
Ok, so maybe the 'blink' idea isn't remotely feasible.
Even so, some misc related thoughts:
It could be preemptive. Like hey it looks like there could be something coming, erroring on the side of caution blink.
Did you know you can still see with your eyes shut? When your eyes are shut you can still tell when the lights are on or off.
Lazers
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There's still the 'shell' during set up idea.
"And the system must run from solar panels, must run cold to not disturb the telescope, must emit no vibration and have no real moving parts (momentum, angular momentum) and can not emit any kind of exhaust or anything which might land on the mirror or optics."
This doesn't have to be attached to the telescope. It could be like one of those plastic Easter eggs shells that holds a toy inside that's not attached to it. Throw away the shell when the toy is ready to be taken out.
Or perhaps it could turn into something like a turtle shell, giving the telescope a place to hide for protection if something major was spotted coming it's way. Although, would moving out of the way be better? How often does something like this occur?