FOR THE FIRST TIME in nearly two centuries of surveying the night sky, astronomers are charting meteor showers in a massive and objective way - by automated surveillance video. Generations of naked-eye observers have discovered and monitored meteor showers by visual counting and hand-plotting. Photography and radar have helped, but all these methods have their limits. Now we're using networks of low-light video cameras and sophisticated data processing to map meteoroid streams much better than ever before. We're finding dozens of new minor showers and some surprising not-so-minor ones. Amateurs are participating, and we're seeking more help in this ongoing effort.
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