In February last year, the sky over Western Europe lit up with a glowing light streak. According to scientists, it looked like a meteor, but it was not a glowing space rock falling through the atmosphere. Instead, it was a burning SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
The event was noticed worldwide. Scientists at the Leibniz Institute for Atmospheric Physics had just installed a new laser system called lidar. The lidar was developed to measure lithium from satellites in the atmosphere.
They suddenly got a golden opportunity to test it. " The cause of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket burning up in the atmosphere has not been determined. It is also unknown what specific findings or data the lidar system captured from this event.
The event allowed researchers to utilize their new technology under ideal conditions.