Scientists from NASA’s George Marshall Space Flight Center have shown some eerie images captured by their cameras watching meteors in the night sky.
NASA has shared a series of mysterious and spooky images for Halloween. Some of them are very easy to solve, for example, one of the pictures clearly shows a frog. The rest, however, require more substantive consideration, but NASA assures us that there is nothing supernatural in the footage.
One of the photos shows a whole web of bright lines in the sky. The streaks have nothing to do with the otherworldly; NASA says that fireflies were captured, not a “bunch of witches flying around on broomsticks.” Another photo shows one of the bird’s legs sitting on the camera.
Probably the most eerie photo of all is the one that shows a meteor, as well as what looks like a dark hooded figure in the lower corner. It’s probably just a play of shadow and light, but it’s perfect for Halloween night.
I always feel like somebody’s watching me… 👁️
When we’re watching the skies, sometimes we catch things watching us! Celebrate #Halloween by checking out some of the creepy crawlies and ghostly ghouls that we’ve captured on our #NASAMarshall Meteor Camera >> https://t.co/ATNwVrSBUH pic.twitter.com/xMGHPsdr1U
– NASA Marshall (@NASA_Marshall) October 31, 2023
The Marshall Space Flight Center is located in Alabama. The cameras are part of NASA’s All-sky Fireball Network, a group of cameras that monitor the brightest meteors in the Earth’s sky.
In total, the network consists of 17 cameras scattered across the US. The lenses of the equipment are always pointed upwards to cover as much of the sky as possible.
“The cameras are set up so that the same fireball can be detected by more than one camera. This allows us to calculate the height of the flying debris and its speed,” NASA says.
The camera network mainly observes meteoroids, which are an intermediate body between space dust and an asteroid. When these objects enter the Earth’s atmosphere, they are called meteors. Sometimes their remnants reach the surface of the Earth, having survived a fiery journey through the atmosphere.
NASA studies meteoroids because they pose a danger to spacecraft. Small fragments of stone and iron can damage satellites, space stations, cargo capsules, or crew capsules.
“Understanding the nature of meteoroids will help spacecraft designers better protect critical components of the vehicles from threats,” the agency said.
Cameras that tirelessly look up into the sky allow scientists to calculate the orbits of meteorites. They can even trace the origin of the observed objects.
The researchers also note that the meteor observation cameras are protected by transparent domes, so birds and reptiles can sit on top of them.
