Space meteor showers visualization powered by SpaceKit.js
The visualization on MeteorShowers.org displays meteoroid streams in the solar system that cause meteor showers on Earth, based on data from NASA's CAMS network and calculations by astronomer Peter Jenniskens. Users can explore interactive views of meteoroid orbits by selecting specific showers, with the tool developed by Ian Webster using the open-source SpaceKit.js engine. The site also provides viewing tips and resources for embedding the visualization or creating similar projects.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
What am I looking at? Meteor showers on Earth are caused by streams of meteoroids hitting our atmosphere. These meteoroids are sand- and pebble-sized bits of rock that were once released from their parent comet. Some comets are no longer active and are now called asteroids. This visualization shows these meteoroid streams orbiting the Sun, some stretching to the outer regions of the solar system. Select the meteor shower in the menu to see the corresponding meteoroid stream in space. Their meteoroid orbits are based on those measured by NASA's CAMS video camera surveillance network, and were calculated by meteor astronomer Peter Jenniskens of the SETI Institute and NASA Ames Research Center. This visualization is developed and hosted by Ian Webster.
…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Meteorshowers.
Discussion
0 commentsMore from Meteorshowers
