The International Astronomy Centre in the UAE achieved a remarkable feat during the peak of the Geminid meteor shower, documenting the paths of more than 3,000 meteors over the past week.
Sophisticated Equipment in Action
In a post on Sunday, the center unveiled images of celestial wonders captured by specialized equipment stationed at three locations in the Abu Dhabi desert. Each station, equipped with 17 low-light-sensitive video cameras, automatically snapped photos of meteors as they illuminated the night sky.
Nightly Captures and Peak Performance
On Wednesday night and into the early hours of Thursday, the camera network recorded over 1,800 meteors. Thursday night, marking the meteor shower’s zenith, witnessed the capture of more than 1,600 meteors. The center noted that Thursday night had prolonged cloudy conditions, potentially explaining the slight reduction in meteor captures.
Mapping Meteor Orbits: AstronomyÂ
The images facilitated the center in determining the orbits of a total of 2,806 meteors over both nights. Drawing the orbit involves establishing the orbital elements of the particles before they transformed into the meteors captured in the photographs.
Visualizing Meteor Trajectories
Visuals accompanying the findings depict the trajectories of the meteors, with yellow indicating the starting point and white indicating the path’s end.
Swift Analysis and NASA Collaboration: AstronomyÂ
The stations swiftly analyze and determine the path and brightness of each meteor upon capture, with the data promptly forwarded to the US space agency NASA.
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