FriponCameras were set up in the four corners of France to monitor meteorsFripon
Astronomers from France have launched a program to monitor meteors that disintegrate as they enter the Earth’s atmosphere, causing an event commonly known as “shooting stars.” Researchers set up 68 cameras that are capable of sweeping the sky looking for asteroids, meteors or any other objects that could reach the Earth. By the end of the year, more cameras will be installed all over France, for a total of roughly 100. Jérémie Vaubaillon, astronomer at the Paris Observatory and one of the organizers of the project, which was dubbed the “Fireball Recovery and InterPlanetary Observation Network” (Fripon), tells the journal Nature “if a meteorite falls on France tomorrow, we will be able to determine where it came from.” Researchers hope to track space rocks more accurately and thus find new ways to study the solar system. They also plan to recruit volunteers to assist in searches for pieces of meteorites.
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