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Re: (meteorobs) Automated video detection...
Howdy, all! Four short contributions from me on this thread:
1) The historical record seems to show that this exact same question of "Why
bother with Visual Meteor Recording" was raised in earnest in the 1950s by the
meteor community, in response to the capabilities of radar. Of course, once the
grant money for this research became scarce (following the initial excitement of
the gear), Visual had a new heyday. The same question was raised yet AGAIN here
in the USA in the 1970s, by the advent of amateur radio meteor setups.
Obviously, there was still a role for Visual throughout the 1980s...
2) Keep in mind that the most important characteristic of meteor data from any
source is continuity: until Video setups (and yet more advanced methods) have
been gathering data continuously for a number of decades, there will not be
nearly the same sample size - or time horizon - in the more "advanced" data that
Visual archives offer... Naturally, the IMO method per se has only been in use
for about 20 years (essentially), but as papers by Dr. Jenniskens, Joe Rao, Rob
McNaught, David Asher and others have amply demonstrated recently, there is
still significant information to be gleaned from calibrating current records
(gained by whatever method) with historical observations.
3) In the final analysis, there is one area of predictive meteor science that
will probably ALWAYS require calibration by careful visual recorders: namely,
the prediction of what human observers (casual or otherwise) will be able to
see! We must not forget that to a large part of even the world astronomical
community, the main purpose of meteoroid dynamics and flux models is to predict
how nice a show they will get from any given shower.
4) All facets of amateur astronomical science face the same question today: what
is the value of our contribution in the face of huge advances in professional
observing technology? The answer (in most areas) continues to be: there is
always a niche for the low-cost, low-tech observer, created by a lack of
consistent money, time or other resources for more complex technologies.
I am completely strapped with work, other astronomy-related threads, and
preparation for my upcoming wedding AND attendance at the "Asteroids Comets and
Meteors" (ACM) Conference in Ithaca NY on July 28-30. Therefore this will be my
LAST contribution to this thread. I hope that others, however little they have
happening in their own lives, will take the above answers at their face value
and let this thread finish its course... We're nearing Perseid peak, and can
definitely do without any "pot stirring" here for the next few months!
Clear skies everyone, and a restful Full Moon,
Lew Gramer
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