quote:Strong Leonid Meteor Shower Expected This Weekend
Robert Roy Britt Senior Science Writer SPACE.com Tue Nov 14, 3:15 PM ET
The annual Leonid meteor shower could produce a strong outburst this weekend for residents of the North America and Western Europe.
A brief surge of activity is expected begin around 11:45 p.m. ET Saturday, Nov. 18. In Europe, that corresponds to early Sunday morning, Nov. 19 at 4:45 GMT. The outburst could last up to two hours.
At the peak, people in these favorable locations could see up to 150 shooting stars per hour, or more than two per minute.
"We expect an outburst of more than 100 Leonids per hour," said Bill Cooke, the head of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office. Cooke notes that the shooting stars during this peak period are likely to be faint, however, created by very small meteoroid grains.
Elsewhere people will see the typically enjoyable Leonid display of a few meteors each hour, weather permitting and assuming dark skies away from city lights [Top 10 Leonids Facts].
This must be what it looks like when adolescent astronomers gather in packs and there's a disagreement on the playground.
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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I saw a fireball once. I had to drive about 30 minutes north of Baltimore to get away from the lights, and just as I was pulling into a dark spot, I saw this bright yellow streak across the sky, like a contrail almost, but it faded very quickly. Several other people in the area saw it too.
Maybe I can talk Chris into a little late-night star-gazing this weekend. Posts: 6394 | Registered: Dec 1999
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I saw a shooting star two years ago during the Leonid Shower whilst driving home from a friend's house. There aren't TOO many lights around the burbs here at night, but I certainly wouldn't be seeing a hundred an hour.
I'll have to take a gander up at the sky. This Saturday night when I get home from work. If I can gather the energy to raise my head up afterwards.
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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quote:Originally posted by anti_maven: Fools! Have you never read Day of the Triffids. I'll be in my bunker...
No need for your bunker, just a super-soaker filled with saltwater.
I remember several years ago (around 2002 I think) my mother and I saw the Leonids and stopped counting the meteors we saw at 700. Haven't seen anything like that since.
Posts: 1711 | Registered: Jun 2004
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Icarus, I've seen the Leonids a few times in Orlando. About 10 or 12 years ago, it was pretty spectacular. Just make sure you get away from the lights.
Posts: 4625 | Registered: Jul 2002
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Whats the difference between yo' momma and Pluto? They both be dogs, but they decided Pluto's too small to be a planet.
Posts: 11895 | Registered: Apr 2002
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I saw the Leonids several years ago which were some of the best in several decades.
As for "Can I see it?", the only obstacles are clouds, whether the peaks are happening when there is daylight in your locale, and if you can stay up (or wake up early) to see them, since all meteor showers have general peaks after local midnight, which is when your area is oriented "head-first" in the direction of the Earth's orbit, and thus plowing right through the comment trails that cause the annual meteor showers.
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This year I was seeing a couple a minute during the "Perseds". We don't have light pollution here except from the darn milky way. Meteor showers are best after midnight because that's when the earth is leading with the edge you are standing on. Now, I just have to get myself to get up at 0X30 on a Sunday morning.
Posts: 1167 | Registered: Oct 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Artemisia Tridentata: This year I was seeing a couple a minute during the "Perseds". We don't have light pollution here except from the darn milky way. Meteor showers are best after midnight because that's when the earth is leading with the edge you are standing on. Now, I just have to get myself to get up at 0X30 on a Sunday morning.
I wonder if there's a particular direction I should be looking (other than up!).
I went outside for about a half hour. The only direction where I have a pretty good view of the stars without light interference is to the East. Anyway, I didn't see anything--or at least, not anything clear enough to be sure I was really seeing anything. It's about forty degrees out, though, so finally I gave up and came back in.
Posts: 13680 | Registered: Mar 2002
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Partly cloudy here in Virginia. Saw at least four during the half hour I was just out; back inside to warm up, I'll try again soon, but doesn't seem like an impressive show this year.
Posts: 2911 | Registered: Aug 2001
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Yes, me too saw four. Some were falling vertical, as if they dropped right on the earth and some were vertical, with a stripe of light behind them. We were very lucky, it was raining when we left the house, but when we reached the hilltop in the woods, there was suddenly some clear sky. I really liked it, never saw it before. BTW I am in Denmark.
Posts: 1247 | Registered: Apr 2000
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Ic, the name of the shower gives you a clue of where to look. Leonids = Constellation of Leo. The meteors appear to emanate from there (tracing their paths back will lead to Leo).
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Leo was barely over the horizon at 11:45. But East was indeed the right place to look. We were clouded out in MA (30 people came to the obsevatory anyway). I'm glad I didn't miss anything spectacular. I am told that the Leonids are the least exciting shower in general.
Posts: 1757 | Registered: Oct 2004
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Me and my sister went out at about 12:45 and lay in the middle of the road. There were no clouds and the sky was amazing. I'm not sure if we saw meteors but we saw 5 or 6 shooting star/meteors. It was really cool.
Posts: 143 | Registered: Oct 2005
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quote: I am told that the Leonids are the least exciting shower in general.
Don't worry. Maybe you're just not his type. I'm sure your showers are as exciting as you want them to be. Posts: 6394 | Registered: Dec 1999
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