Speaker
Description
MeteorCam is an instrument to observe meteors and fireballs from the LightShip-1 spacecraft with a light-sensitive camera. LightShip-1 is currently studied by ESA as a possible future Mars mission. It will be in an orbit around Mars between 5000 and 6000 km in height, possibly with multiple spacecraft. There was a call for payload for instruments that would characterise the Mars environment, thus contributing to space safety around the red planet. We have been preliminarily selected for the mission, with the Space Exploration Institute in Neuchatel, CH, as the PI institute. The instrument will be designed around the tE2v CIS-120 detector, use a light-sensitive optics imaging the entire martian disk, and have automated detection software on board. We expect funding for a payload maturation phase starting in 2027.