Jump to content

Draft:Meteorite Observation and Recovery Program

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Meteorite Observation and Recovery Program
AbbreviationMORP
Location

The Meteorite Observation and Recovery Program (or MORP) was a scientific program in the Canadian Prairies that operated from 1971 to 1985. Its aim was to photograph meteors, determine where they landed, and thus locate and analyse their meteorites. The program consisted of a network of twelve observatories. The Innisfree meteorite was the only meteorite recovered during the program; more meteorites were recovered later using data from the program.

History

[edit]

The program was planned and constructed[by whom?] in the 1960s. The prairie provinces of Alberta, Sasketchewan, and Manitoba were chosen because of their clear night-sky conditions and suitable terrain. Site searches began in 1966. Eight of the twelve observatory sites were selected in 1967, and the other four were selected in 1968. The network was operated from a headquarters in the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon. The observatory near Asquith was the first to be constructed for the network in 1968. The network became fully operational in 1971.[1][2][3]

The program ended in 1985.[why?][4]

Observatories

[edit]

The MORP network consisted of 12 observatories, named after nearby settlements:[1]

MORP Observatory Locations
Observatory Coordinates Elevation (metres)
Asquith 52°12′04″N 107°07′04″W / 52.20111°N 107.11778°W / 52.20111; -107.11778 527
Neilburg 52°41′25″N 109°36′11″W / 52.69028°N 109.60306°W / 52.69028; -109.60306 651
Vegreville 53°32′03″N 112°06′45″W / 53.53417°N 112.11250°W / 53.53417; -112.11250 640
Lousana 52°07′42″N 113°11′48″W / 52.12833°N 113.19667°W / 52.12833; -113.19667 929
Brooks 50°29′53″N 111°53′15″W / 50.49806°N 111.88750°W / 50.49806; -111.88750 774
Leader 50°54′01″N 109°37′1″W / 50.90028°N 109.61694°W / 50.90028; -109.61694 677
Ernfold 50°31′18″N 106°51′04″W / 50.52167°N 106.85111°W / 50.52167; -106.85111 710
Lajord 50°16′21″N 104°09′28″W / 50.27250°N 104.15778°W / 50.27250; -104.15778 600
Langenburg 50°44′51″N 101°43′08″W / 50.74750°N 101.71889°W / 50.74750; -101.71889 512
Alonsa 50°44′36″N 99°03′31″W / 50.74333°N 99.05861°W / 50.74333; -99.05861 287
Birch River 52°24′06″N 101°00′49″W / 52.40167°N 101.01361°W / 52.40167; -101.01361 277
Watson 52°01′29″N 104°34′21″W / 52.02472°N 104.57250°W / 52.02472; -104.57250 533

Innisfree Meteorite

[edit]

The MORP program led to the recovery of the Innisfree meteorite in 1977.[1][4][5] It was the only meteorite observed by the program that was recovered before the program ended.[6]


References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1978JRASC..72...15H
  2. ^ https://www.rasc.ca/sites/default/files/publications/JRASC-2001-02.pdf, p.26
  3. ^ https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1992JRASC..86..130B
  4. ^ a b https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1989JRASC..83...49H
  5. ^ https://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/full_html/2020/12/aa38649-20/aa38649-20.html
  6. ^ Devillepoix, Hadrien A. R.; Sansom, Eleanor K.; Bland, Philip A.; Towner, Martin C.; Cupák, Martin; Howie, Robert M.; Jansen‐Sturgeon, Trent; Cox, Morgan A.; Hartig, Benjamin A. D.; Benedix, Gretchen K.; Paxman, Jonathan P. (October 2018). "The Dingle Dell meteorite: A Halloween treat from the Main Belt". Meteoritics & Planetary Science. 53 (10): 2212–2227. doi:10.1111/maps.13142.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Draft:Meteorite_Observation_and_Recovery_Program&oldid=1290679082"