|
|
| The Event:
|
Meteor
Shower, Possible Meteor Storm (Meteor is the proper term
for "shooting star") |
| When: |
November
17/18, sometime between Midnight and 6 a.m. (dawn) (technically
the morning of the 18th) |
| Where: |
Look up,
all around the sky! (Preferably from out in the countryside, see
below) |
|
|
| The Predictions: |
(all times
are in CENTRAL TIME) |
|
There are
4 teams of scientists, all with different predictions.
Generally, all agree on a peak of about 800 to 4,000 meteors per
hour sometime between 3:30 and 5 a.m. on the morning of the
18th. (but see below for more on this!!!) |
| Very Important
Notes: These
predictions assume that an observer is under very dark, pristine
skies. The closer one is to the city, the fewer meteors will be
seen. But if one can’t get away from the city, it still is
worth watching the skies on that morning. |
--The best
time, as noted, is to watch the show CONSISTENTLY between midnight and 6
a.m. (or dawn) on the morning of the 18th. That leaves room for a bit of
error in the predictions. DO
NOT watch the show for a few minutes, and give up. Meteor watching
takes patience. Bring a battery operated alarm clock (to wake yourself
up) if necessary. Do not fall asleep and miss the show!
--As noted, all times are in
CENTRAL TIME. Please adjust accordingly for anyone else watching out of
this time zone. Also, the
predictions above are good for North and Central America only. If you
have relatives living in other parts of the world, e-mail me and I will
tell you what they are predicted to see. (several of the teams predict
peaks for the Central and Western Pacific, as well as Eastern Asia and
Australia)
--Please note that all of these are just PREDICTIONS; they may
not actually happen. The only way
to know what will happen is to be outside on the peak night, looking up.
Sources:
Too numerous to list here. But I want to give credit where it’s due,
so if you want to know where I got this information, please e-mail me at
the address below.
Contact me at: astrophoto@yahoo.com
--If you have any questions, e-mail
me…(I can also give you more details on all the predictions)
--If you see the show, PLEASE e-mail me your comments!
(what you saw, how you felt, etc.)
--You are my
ambassadors! Feel free to pass this information on (including my e-mail
address) to all your friends and family.
Also
read Mark's Leonid article at Natural
Photography's Leonids 2001.
Mark
Egan
Special
Thanks to Mark for letting me post his most excellent notes on this
Meteor event. |
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