Japanese startup wants to sell artificial meteor showers

A project released by a Japanese startup late last month promises to make meteor showers on demand. This means that one of the most beautiful astronomical phenomena can now be ordered and programmed in a new way. “space fun”The announcement says it will still be possible to conduct critical climate research with the event.

Investing in the admiration created by the natural appearance of space objects burning in the atmosphere, ALE Co. Tokyo wants to convert from Japan “The night sky in a showcase for man-made shooting stars”. The company’s website says the main goal is to use the starry sky as a source of scientific curiosity.

But it’s not just fun: These “artificial meteorites” also aim to study the path and light emission of natural shooting stars. To better understand the “mysteries of the Earth’s atmosphere”. The goal is to facilitate the acquisition of climate data on the planet in a region of the atmosphere that is too high for weather balloons to reach and too low for satellites to observe.

How is a meteor shower made?

The light emitted by a meteor, which delights observers, is caused by extreme aerodynamic heating from the friction of small pieces of rock or metal (meteoroids) with Earth’s atmosphere. What Sky Canvas is doing is copying this natural phenomenon, releasing tiny particles from moons that have become meteorites.

Thus, the “rare, beautiful and heavenly experience” – the website says – can be recreated at the push of a button. Artificial meteorites are actually small spheres one centimeter in diameter, made of material obtained from the satellite itself, imitating the brightness of shooting stars as they burn in the atmosphere.

Sky Canvas is the first man-made shooting star model with the aim of exploring a new commercial market, as well as fostering collective entertainment and scientific inspirational experiences.