You better start memorizing your wishes now, because in 2025 hundreds of shooting stars will rise to the sky – after being dropped from satellites.
This will be the world’s first artificial meteor shower by space startup ALE, which will take place in Japan.
Shooting stars appear when Earth passes through a cloud of debris left in its orbit by comets and asteroids.
Particles emit light because they quickly heat up as they pass through the atmosphere at high speed.
For this project, called “SKY CANVAS”, repeated meteorite particles will be pinned to a satellite at an altitude of 250 miles (400 km), then fired into a designated area.
The world’s first artificial meteor shower will be conducted by space startup ALE in Japan
For this project, called “SKY CANVAS”, particles will be attached to a satellite at an altitude of 250 miles (400 km), then released in a designated area. Photo: ALE-1 satellite
These metal particles will be spherical in shape about 0.4 inches (1 cm) in diameter and a few grams in mass.
The pea-sized balls contain a secret chemical formula that causes them to ignite from re-entry friction, at speeds of up to five miles (8 kilometers) per second.
ALE says they will move slower and shine longer than normal stars – up to ten seconds each.
It will be visible to stargazers within 125 miles (200 km).
The ingredients in the pellets can be changed to change the color of each bright streak, meaning fleets of multicolored shooting stars can be created.
After about two years of orbit, the backpack-sized satellite will reenter the atmosphere and disintegrate completely, preventing it from becoming space debris.
The light show will not only be a joy to watch for stargazers, but will also help gather data about the third layer of Earth’s atmosphere – the “mesosphere”.
This is not an easy area to study, as airships and planes cannot fly high enough to reach it, but too low to be observed by satellites.
But scientists will be able to gather information about wind speed and atmospheric composition by following the trajectories and light emission of artificial meteorites.
Engineers at ALE will be able to control the position, velocity and timing of meteorite particles to help carry out experiments.
The pea-sized balls contain a secret chemical formula that causes them to ignite from re-entry friction, at speeds of up to five miles (8 kilometers) per second.
The team hopes the data will help inform weather models and, ultimately, improve our understanding of climate change.
Another goal of the project, which was first announced in 2015, is to help spark greater interest in space and science in general.
“Our goal is to contribute to the sustainable development of humanity and bring space closer to all of us, by expanding the areas of human activity beyond Earth to discover, collect and apply essential elements,” said Dr. Lena Okajima, Founder and CEO of ALE. data from outer space.
As a first step, I founded ALE to create the world’s first man-made shooting star, to inspire wonder and spark scientific curiosity.
Engineers at ALE will be able to control the position, velocity, and timing of meteorite particles, to help with experiments (artist impressions)
Another goal of this project, which was first announced in 2015, is to help inspire greater interest in space and science in general (artist impressions)
“In the future, by combining critical climate research with new forms of space entertainment, we believe we can advance our scientific understanding of climate change while inspiring the curiosity and interest of people around the world about outer space and the universe.”
Those wishing to financially support this project can do so by purchasing the SKY CANVAS VIP PASS NFT.
This will allow access to online events, and the chance to win an invite to see the SKY CANVAS show in person.
This is currently unavailable, and the price has not been disclosed
