6 ms·

Set up a Raspberry Pi meteor detector

138 points by jstanley 6y ago

cassianoleal 6y ago
Very cool! There is a typo in the title: metero for meteor.
- chefandy 6y ago
  I racked by brain for a solid 10 seconds trying to remember what a metero was before I just clicked on the link. Ah! That makes more sense!
- jstanley 6y ago
  Oops! Fixed, thanks.
destitude 6y ago
Where exactly to get the hardware such as the IMX291 camera module would be helpful.
- jstanley 6y ago
  I've rooted around their build instructions and they suggest this Aliexpress listing: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32984151266.html https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32984151266.html There is also a Croatian company "IstraStream" that will supply a ready-built system: https://globalmeteornetwork.org/?page_id=136 https://globalmeteornetwork.org/?page_id=136 There are a number of eBay listings for camera modules that contain an IMX291 sensor but they don't appear to be the same, and in particular don't appear to take power-over-ethernet. I don't know how easy it would be to integrate one of these, but they mostly ship from China anyway so there doesn't seem to be much advantage over the Aliexpress option. I also wonder how feasible it would be to use the default Raspberry Pi camera module. Probably the issue is that it is not sufficiently sensitive.
  - jacksonkmarley 6y ago
    From the picture it doesn't look like the camera module has an actual poe connector, they seem to be using a splitter cable.
destitude 6y ago
Is there a way to get a map of what areas are currently covered by the global meteor network?
- jstanley 6y ago
  I'm not sure where to get an up to date view but the slide at 5:45 in this video has a map: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAGq-XqD5Po&t=5m45s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAGq-XqD5Po&t=5m45s
  - taf2 6y ago
    Wow if that is correct then we really are blind to incoming end the world meteors
    - lanerobertlane 6y ago
      This wouldn't generally help with that, as these record meteors that are passing through the atmosphere. Potentially Hazardous Objects have to be modelled from quite far away and have their courses plotted. Most PHOs would not show up on cameras such as this.
      - jstanley 6y ago
        And if they did, it would be too late!
- abdullahkhalids 6y ago
  https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/list.html https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/list.htm...
Zenst 6y ago
I'd be inclined to get a POE hub/switch cheap (30$ branded, unbranded and talking sub $10) and the adapter for the Rpi and run them both over that. Not sure how the cost balances for this and maybe a bit more going that option, but if you add a single other POE device, it would definitely pay off cheaper and certainly more flexible cable wise on Ethernet and as such power.
- giantg2 6y ago
  That's the same type of setup that is common for security cameras using PoE. It seems to work well. Depending on how resource intensive the video analysis is, you could have several cameras being analyzed by a single mini computer (Atom based $100). That might be slightly cheaper than a single Pi per camera. Also, where are you finding those PoE switches?! I was looking for 8 port ones just a few months ago and they were about $50 for cheap ones and at least $80 for brand names.
  - Something1234 6y ago
    I would very much like to know too. I would love to get some PoE equipment.
    - giantg2 6y ago
      Amazon Warehouse was the best deal I found a few months ago.
  - Zenst 6y ago
    I just did a quick look upon Amazon. Was looking at 5 port ones so maybe sweet spot price wise. Had quick look at 8 port ones and branded would be around prices you have - though Netgear seemed closer to 50 price wise. Do note many 8 port models only do POE over half the ports I've noticed, so mindful of that and two 4/5 port affairs maybe better price in some situations. Though if you're in no rush, January is sure to have some good sales/warehouse return deals. Though if you want to go offbrand and 10/100 do you then "Cudy FS1010P 8+2-Port 100Mbps Ethernet PoE+ Unmanaged Plug and Play Switch, 120 W, 8 10/100Mbps PoE+ Ports" on Amazon will pull up a 40$ model as an example that seems like maybe worth checking into.
nottrobin 6y ago
"We all know about the big meteor showers such as the Geminids and Perseids" Nods sagely
oyebenny 6y ago
I wish the author included a BOM with links to the parts needed.
- jstanley 6y ago
  This is probably the document you seek: https://docs.google.com/document/d/18TT-Jm7z9kYskl5ua07jQWD91OiyBemBnOosiNdW6nY/edit https://docs.google.com/document/d/18TT-Jm7z9kYskl5ua07jQWD9...
  - ngcc_hk 6y ago
    Thanks. Wonder whether it can be used as a dome monitoring camera as well. Or even as a security cam (another camera of course).
    - destitude 6y ago
      For a "dome"/all sky camera the frame of view would be so large it would decrease the sensitivity and resolution of monitoring a particular part of the sky.. in the end that means you'd see less meteors with a dome/all sky camera then one with smaller frame of view.
kapilkaisare 6y ago
I imagine this would capture meteor flares only in areas with minimal lighting. In urban (and surrounding) areas, the light pollution would render human (and I imagine, digital) eyes blind to the celestial tapestry. Are there cameras that can filter the light pollution out?
- jacksonkmarley 6y ago
  If there aren't any bright objects in the direct field of view it should be possible to see flashes in the sky on a clear night.
- z3t4 6y ago
  Could possibly capture the ultra red (heat) range that are usually filtered out by normal cameras.
- dylan604 6y ago
  There are filters[0] you can add to lenses that will filter out certain types of lights. While it will never replace finding an actual dark sky location, it will slightly improve what can be imaged. [0]http://astronomyonline.info/best-light-pollution-filters/ http://astronomyonline.info/best-light-pollution-filters/
gregable 6y ago
I have wondered how possible it might be to set up a few such cameras in a region and use them to triangulate meteor landing sites, maybe go find them after? I don't know how precise you could get, but it feels like if you could get down to a football field or something, maybe you could find the recently fallen ones, at least the large ones.
- jstanley 6y ago
  That is precisely the kind of work performed (in the open, all the data is public) by the Global Meteor Network: https://globalmeteornetwork.org/ https://globalmeteornetwork.org/ Unfortunately most meteors never land because they completely burn up in the atmosphere. From the reading I've done today, I think the ones you're after are called "meteor-dropping fireballs".
  - pfundstein 6y ago
    > Unfortunately most meteors never land because they completely burn up in the atmosphere. I think you mean "fortunately".
destitude 6y ago
Do you know if this would work over wifi assuming you power the Pi and camera via some other means?
cozzyd 6y ago
I was kind of imagining this would use an sdr to look for meteor scatter from distant VHF transmitters (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor_burst_communications https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor_burst_communications)
Roritharr 6y ago
I've always dreamed of capturing good footage of UFOs, fully knowing that they are with 99,99...% likelihood just fiction. The latest round of UFO buzz got me interested in how one would setup tracking network for UFOs, this might be an interesting starting point.
- KriiV 6y ago
  "fully knowing that they are with 99,99...% likelihood just fiction." Given the size of the universe, and its age, I would take some time to consider that the possibility that there is not some sort of phenomenon like that would be 99,99....%.
DDR0 6y ago
Technically, every server I run is an extremely localized meteor detector. The rate of false positives is horrendous, though…
- zamadatix 6y ago
  Wouldn't that be a meteorite detector?
  - goofiw 6y ago
    I think it might be a meteorwrong detector
bshep 6y ago
Im working on getting this to work on a docker, i already own a bunch of IP cams so it would be trivial to retask one to look for meteors ( to get cool pics for the kids ). If i get it working i’ll post a link to dockerhub
- bshep 6y ago
  Here is the Dockerfile in case anyone is interested: https://gist.github.com/bshep/c33d156fc8769e92ee652b3d82a1c14e https://gist.github.com/bshep/c33d156fc8769e92ee652b3d82a1c1... I tested what I could and I think it works. The hardest part was figuring out how to run the opencv install script as it was designed for a directory structure i coult not replicate.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
destitude 6y ago
The Global Meteor Network wiki page was extremely helpful as well: https://globalmeteornetwork.org/wiki https://globalmeteornetwork.org/wiki

138 points by jstanley 6y ago

cassianoleal 6y ago

Very cool! There is a typo in the title: metero for meteor.

chefandy 6y ago
I racked by brain for a solid 10 seconds trying to remember what a metero was before I just clicked on the link. Ah! That makes more sense!
jstanley 6y ago
Oops! Fixed, thanks.

destitude 6y ago

Where exactly to get the hardware such as the IMX291 camera module would be helpful.

jstanley 6y ago
I've rooted around their build instructions and they suggest this Aliexpress listing: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32984151266.html https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32984151266.html There is also a Croatian company "IstraStream" that will supply a ready-built system: https://globalmeteornetwork.org/?page_id=136 https://globalmeteornetwork.org/?page_id=136 There are a number of eBay listings for camera modules that contain an IMX291 sensor but they don't appear to be the same, and in particular don't appear to take power-over-ethernet. I don't know how easy it would be to integrate one of these, but they mostly ship from China anyway so there doesn't seem to be much advantage over the Aliexpress option. I also wonder how feasible it would be to use the default Raspberry Pi camera module. Probably the issue is that it is not sufficiently sensitive.
- jacksonkmarley 6y ago
  From the picture it doesn't look like the camera module has an actual poe connector, they seem to be using a splitter cable.

destitude 6y ago

Is there a way to get a map of what areas are currently covered by the global meteor network?

jstanley 6y ago
I'm not sure where to get an up to date view but the slide at 5:45 in this video has a map: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAGq-XqD5Po&t=5m45s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAGq-XqD5Po&t=5m45s
- taf2 6y ago
  Wow if that is correct then we really are blind to incoming end the world meteors
  - lanerobertlane 6y ago
    This wouldn't generally help with that, as these record meteors that are passing through the atmosphere. Potentially Hazardous Objects have to be modelled from quite far away and have their courses plotted. Most PHOs would not show up on cameras such as this.
    - jstanley 6y ago
      And if they did, it would be too late!
abdullahkhalids 6y ago
https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/list.html https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/list.htm...

Zenst 6y ago

I'd be inclined to get a POE hub/switch cheap (30$ branded, unbranded and talking sub $10) and the adapter for the Rpi and run them both over that. Not sure how the cost balances for this and maybe a bit more going that option, but if you add a single other POE device, it would definitely pay off cheaper and certainly more flexible cable wise on Ethernet and as such power.

giantg2 6y ago
That's the same type of setup that is common for security cameras using PoE. It seems to work well. Depending on how resource intensive the video analysis is, you could have several cameras being analyzed by a single mini computer (Atom based $100). That might be slightly cheaper than a single Pi per camera. Also, where are you finding those PoE switches?! I was looking for 8 port ones just a few months ago and they were about $50 for cheap ones and at least $80 for brand names.
- Something1234 6y ago
  I would very much like to know too. I would love to get some PoE equipment.
  - giantg2 6y ago
    Amazon Warehouse was the best deal I found a few months ago.
- Zenst 6y ago
  I just did a quick look upon Amazon. Was looking at 5 port ones so maybe sweet spot price wise. Had quick look at 8 port ones and branded would be around prices you have - though Netgear seemed closer to 50 price wise. Do note many 8 port models only do POE over half the ports I've noticed, so mindful of that and two 4/5 port affairs maybe better price in some situations. Though if you're in no rush, January is sure to have some good sales/warehouse return deals. Though if you want to go offbrand and 10/100 do you then "Cudy FS1010P 8+2-Port 100Mbps Ethernet PoE+ Unmanaged Plug and Play Switch, 120 W, 8 10/100Mbps PoE+ Ports" on Amazon will pull up a 40$ model as an example that seems like maybe worth checking into.

nottrobin 6y ago

"We all know about the big meteor showers such as the Geminids and Perseids" Nods sagely

oyebenny 6y ago

I wish the author included a BOM with links to the parts needed.

jstanley 6y ago
This is probably the document you seek: https://docs.google.com/document/d/18TT-Jm7z9kYskl5ua07jQWD91OiyBemBnOosiNdW6nY/edit https://docs.google.com/document/d/18TT-Jm7z9kYskl5ua07jQWD9...
- ngcc_hk 6y ago
  Thanks. Wonder whether it can be used as a dome monitoring camera as well. Or even as a security cam (another camera of course).
  - destitude 6y ago
    For a "dome"/all sky camera the frame of view would be so large it would decrease the sensitivity and resolution of monitoring a particular part of the sky.. in the end that means you'd see less meteors with a dome/all sky camera then one with smaller frame of view.

kapilkaisare 6y ago

I imagine this would capture meteor flares only in areas with minimal lighting. In urban (and surrounding) areas, the light pollution would render human (and I imagine, digital) eyes blind to the celestial tapestry. Are there cameras that can filter the light pollution out?

jacksonkmarley 6y ago
If there aren't any bright objects in the direct field of view it should be possible to see flashes in the sky on a clear night.
z3t4 6y ago
Could possibly capture the ultra red (heat) range that are usually filtered out by normal cameras.
dylan604 6y ago
There are filters[0] you can add to lenses that will filter out certain types of lights. While it will never replace finding an actual dark sky location, it will slightly improve what can be imaged. [0]http://astronomyonline.info/best-light-pollution-filters/ http://astronomyonline.info/best-light-pollution-filters/

gregable 6y ago

I have wondered how possible it might be to set up a few such cameras in a region and use them to triangulate meteor landing sites, maybe go find them after? I don't know how precise you could get, but it feels like if you could get down to a football field or something, maybe you could find the recently fallen ones, at least the large ones.

jstanley 6y ago
That is precisely the kind of work performed (in the open, all the data is public) by the Global Meteor Network: https://globalmeteornetwork.org/ https://globalmeteornetwork.org/ Unfortunately most meteors never land because they completely burn up in the atmosphere. From the reading I've done today, I think the ones you're after are called "meteor-dropping fireballs".
- pfundstein 6y ago
  > Unfortunately most meteors never land because they completely burn up in the atmosphere. I think you mean "fortunately".

destitude 6y ago

Do you know if this would work over wifi assuming you power the Pi and camera via some other means?

cozzyd 6y ago

I was kind of imagining this would use an sdr to look for meteor scatter from distant VHF transmitters (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor_burst_communications https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor_burst_communications)

Roritharr 6y ago

I've always dreamed of capturing good footage of UFOs, fully knowing that they are with 99,99...% likelihood just fiction. The latest round of UFO buzz got me interested in how one would setup tracking network for UFOs, this might be an interesting starting point.

KriiV 6y ago
"fully knowing that they are with 99,99...% likelihood just fiction." Given the size of the universe, and its age, I would take some time to consider that the possibility that there is not some sort of phenomenon like that would be 99,99....%.

DDR0 6y ago

Technically, every server I run is an extremely localized meteor detector. The rate of false positives is horrendous, though…

zamadatix 6y ago
Wouldn't that be a meteorite detector?
- goofiw 6y ago
  I think it might be a meteorwrong detector

bshep 6y ago

Im working on getting this to work on a docker, i already own a bunch of IP cams so it would be trivial to retask one to look for meteors ( to get cool pics for the kids ). If i get it working i’ll post a link to dockerhub

bshep 6y ago
Here is the Dockerfile in case anyone is interested: https://gist.github.com/bshep/c33d156fc8769e92ee652b3d82a1c14e https://gist.github.com/bshep/c33d156fc8769e92ee652b3d82a1c1... I tested what I could and I think it works. The hardest part was figuring out how to run the opencv install script as it was designed for a directory structure i coult not replicate.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

destitude 6y ago

The Global Meteor Network wiki page was extremely helpful as well: https://globalmeteornetwork.org/wiki https://globalmeteornetwork.org/wiki