How Drones Found the Meteorite that Lit Up Australian Night Sky

Finding meteorites after they shoot across the night sky is notoriously difficult. Now astronomers have done it for the first time using drones and machine vision algorithms.

The Physics arXiv Blog iconThe Physics arXiv Blog
By The Physics arXiv Blog
Mar 7, 2022 6:37 PMMar 7, 2022 6:36 PM
comet
(Credit:Lemonsoup14/Shutterstock)

Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter for the latest science news
 

The Desert Fireball Network in Australia is a system of cameras that monitor the night sky looking for fireballs. The network ensures that several cameras view every region of the sky so that the trajectory of the incoming rock can be triangulated with reasonable accuracy.

When the Network detects a fireball, it is straightforward to work out the location of the meteorite landing site to within a few square kilometers. A team of astronomers is then dispatched to find it.

And therein lies the problem. A ground search over several square kilometers is time consuming and laborious. It usually consists of four to six people walking between five and ten meters apart who scour the area over a 4-day period until they find the culprit.

0 free articles left
Want More? Get unlimited access for as low as $1.99/month

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

0 free articlesSubscribe
Discover Magazine Logo
Want more?

Keep reading for as low as $1.99!

Subscribe

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

Stay Curious

Sign up for our weekly newsletter and unlock one more article for free.

 

View our Privacy Policy


Want more?
Keep reading for as low as $1.99!


Log In or Register

Already a subscriber?
Find my Subscription

More From Discover
Recommendations From Our Store
Shop Now
Stay Curious
Join
Our List

Sign up for our weekly science updates.

 
Subscribe
To The Magazine

Save up to 40% off the cover price when you subscribe to Discover magazine.

Copyright © 2024 Kalmbach Media Co.