Determination of meteoroid orbits and spatial fluxes by using high-resolution all-sky CCD cameras

Abstract

By using high-resolution, low-scan-rate, all-sky CCD cameras, the SPanish Meteor Network (SPMN) is currently monitoring meteor and fireball activity on a year round basis. Here are presented just a sampling of the accurate trajectory, radiant and orbital data obtained for meteors imaged simultaneously from two SPMN stations during the continuous 2006-2007 coverage of meteor and fireball monitoring. Typical astrometric uncertainty is 1-2 arc min, while velocity determination errors are of the order of 0.1-0.5 km/s, which is dependent on the distance of each event to the station and its particular viewing geometry. The cameras have demonstrated excellent performance for detecting meteor outbursts. The recent development of automatic detection software is also providing real-time information on the global meteor activity. Finally, some examples of the all-sky CCD cameras applications for detecting unexpected meteor activity are given. © 2007 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.