The Subaru-Asahi StarCam: Description of the system

TL;DR

The Subaru-Asahi StarCam is a high-sensitivity live-streaming camera installed at Maunakea, capable of real-time meteor observation and scientific discovery, including detecting new meteor showers and activity peaks, with potential for citizen science.

Contribution

This paper introduces the Subaru-Asahi StarCam system, highlighting its high sensitivity, real-time streaming, and scientific achievements in meteor detection, which is a novel application of accessible camera technology at an astronomical site.

Findings

Detection of the Arid meteor shower in 2021

Identification of a sub-peak in Gamma-Perseid activity (2021)

Detection of the Tau-Herculid outburst in 2022

Abstract

The Subaru-Asahi StarCam is a high-sensitivity live-streaming camera for meteor observation, installed on the dome of the Subaru Telescope at the summit area of Maunakea, Hawai'i. Although it was originally intended to share the Maunakea night sky with the public, including the local Hawai'i community, the system quickly demonstrated its potential for scientific research, owing to its highly sensitive video capabilities and the exceptional fraction of clear nights at the site. The core of the StarCam system features a Sony FX3 camera body paired with an F1.4 wide-angle lens, offering a field of view of 70 deg by 40 deg. Leveraging a state-of-the-art, high-sensitivity CMOS sensor and a bright lens, the system is capable of capturing stars as faint as magnitude 8 in real-time, with an effective frame rate of 15--30 fps. Live streaming via YouTube began in April 2021, and the feed is constantly monitored by more than a hundred viewers at any given nighttime. This has enabled the camera to be used not only for observing regular meteor showers but also for monitoring scientifically important phenomena such as fireballs or unexpected meteor outbursts. Notable scientific achievements include: 1) Detection of the new Arid meteor shower in 2021, 2) Identification of a sub-peak activity in the Gamma-Perseid meteor shower (2021), 3) Detection of the 2022 Tau-Herculid meteor shower outburst, 4) Confirmation of the activity of the Andromedid meteor shower (2021), and 5) Multiple detections of meteor cluster phenomena. We discuss the potential and the future scope of StarCam as an open-access, real-time data platform for citizen science in meteor observations.