2020 meteor shower work stated in Tokyo

Tokyo-based working on  2020 meteor shower

A Japanese startup ALE Co., based in Tokyo, is aiming for the stars, literally. It plans to start offering the world’s first artificial meteor shower over Hiroshima in a show scheduled to be held in early 2020.

representational image

The firm is busy working on what they ambitiously refer to as “shooting stars on demand”. As reported in The Japan Times, ALE has confirmed that they are currently in the final stages of developing two microsatellites. These microsatellites will create the whole meteor experience by releasing tiny balls that will glow brightly on entering the atmosphere, and this will simulate a meteor shower.

Japan’s space agency plans to launch the first satellite into space on a rocket by March 2019, and the second is schedule to be launched in mid-2019 on a private-sector rocket. Each satellite will be capable of carrying 400 tiny balls, and the chemical formula is being secretly guarded. The balls will glow as they are thrown into the atmosphere, after being ejected from the satellite. The company officials claim that 400 balls would be enough for 20-30 events, and the satellites can stay in the space for two years.

“We are targeting the whole world, as our stockpile of shooting stars will be in space and can be delivered across the world”. The company is looking at another possibility - using satellites that already in space but no longer operational. Officials says that these can be used to create “giant” shooting stars," ALE chief executive Lena Okajima told reporters.

Source: https://www.moneycontrol.com