THE SKY IS FALLING!! THE SKY IS FALLING!!!!
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| Leonid Meteor Shower http://www.sabresjunkie.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=988 |
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| Author: | psychemedisabrefan [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 1:33 am ] |
| Post subject: | Leonid Meteor Shower |
Strong Leonid Meteor Shower Peaks Early Tuesday Morning One of the best annual meteor showers will peak in the pre-dawn hours Tuesday, and for some skywatchers the show could be quite impressive. The best seats are in Asia, but North American observers should be treated to an above average performance of the Leonid meteor shower, weather permitting. The trick for all observers is to head outside in the wee hours of the morning – between 1 a.m. and dawn – regardless where you live. The Leonids put on a solid show every year, if skies are clear and moonlight does not interfere. This year the moon is near its new phase, and not a factor. For anyone in the Northern Hemisphere with dark skies, away from urban and suburban lighting, the show should be worth getting up early to see. "We're predicting 20 to 30 meteors per hour over the Americas, and as many as 200 to 300 per hour over Asia," said Bill Cooke of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office. Other astronomers who work in the nascent field of meteor shower prediction have put out similar forecasts. Urban dwellers and suburbanites will see far fewer, as the fainter meteors will be drowned out by local lights. Behind the Leonids The Leonids are created by the comet Tempel-Tuttle, which passes through the inner solar system every 33 years on its orbit around the sun. Each time by, it leaves a new river of debris, mostly bits of ice and rock no bigger than a sand grain but a few the size of a pea or marble. Over time, these cosmic streams spread out, so predicting exactly what will happen is difficult. "We can predict when Earth will cross a debris stream with pretty good accuracy," Cooke said. "The intensity of the display is less certain, though, because we don't know how much debris is in each stream." When Earth plows into the debris, the bits hit the atmosphere and vaporize, creating sometimes dramatic streaks of light and the occasional fireball with a smoky-looking trail that can remain visible for several minutes. The Leonid stream is moving in the opposite direction of Earth, producing impact speeds of 160,000 mph (72 kilometers per second) – higher than many other meteors. "Such speeds tend to produce meteors with hues of white, blue, aquamarine and even green," says Joe Rao, SPACE.com's skywatching columnist. How to watch The best viewing will be in rural areas. Get out of town if you can. If you have local lights, scout a location in advance where the lights are blocked by a building, tree or hill. Dress warmly, and take a blanket or lounge chair so you can lie back and scan as much of the sky as possible. "At this time of year, meteor watching can be a long, cold business," Rao reminds people. Leonids can appear anywhere, but if you trace them back, they all point to a hub, or radiant, in the constellation Leo – hence the name. Give your eyes 15 minutes to adjust to the darkness. Then give the show at least a half-hour. The hourly rates stated above typically come in bursts, with lulls that may test your patience. No special equipment is needed. Telescopes and binoculars are of no use because meteors move too quickly. When to watch Earth will pass through one of the denser debris streams at around 4 a.m. EST (1 a.m. PST) Tuesday. If you have only an hour or less to watch, center it around this time. Leo will be high in the sky for East Coast skywatchers, putting more meteors into view. In the West, Leo will be low in the eastern sky at this time, so fewer shooting stars will be above the horizon, and therefore Western skywatchers should also try to stick it out until daybreak. Across Europe, the best bet is to watch anytime between 1 a.m. and daybreak local time. The planet will pass through an even denser stream later, just before dawn Wednesday in Indonesia and China, but that show won't be visible from North America because it will be daytime here. One truth about the Leonids: They always produce, and they sometimes produce spectacular, unforgettable fireballs. Top 10 Leonid Meteor Shower Facts Complete 2009 Leonids Viewer's Guide Leonid Image Galleries 1, Strong Leonid Meteor Shower Peaks Early Tuesday Morning SPACE.com offers rich and compelling content about space science, travel and exploration as well as astronomy, technology, business news and more. The site boasts a variety of popular features including our space image of the day and other space pictures,space videos, Top 10s, Trivia, podcasts and Amazing Images submitted by our users. Join our community, sign up for our free newsletters and register for our RSS Feeds today! |
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| Author: | Rutledge222 [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 1:45 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
Ya ive been out a few times already and seen a few here and there. Im planning on going out again sometime within the next hour or so to see if there is more. I always like going out to see it. It is cool to watch. |
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| Author: | PuckSniperPensel [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 1:46 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
Rutledge222 wrote: Ya ive been out a few times already and seen a few here and there. Im planning on going out again sometime within the next hour or so to see if there is more. I always like going out to see it. It is cool to watch. Ditto. I'll be heading outside in the next 15-30 minutes. |
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| Author: | Rutledge222 [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 1:50 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
Ya as soon as its about 10 or so after 1:00 ill be heading out for a little bit to watch and then head to bed lol cuz i have class early tomorrow and id rather get some kinda sleep lol. |
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| Author: | PuckSniperPensel [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 2:27 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
I've been outside since 1. I've seen a few, but the frequency isn't that great right now. I'm going inside to warm up and watch planet earth until 2 to see if things pick up then. |
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| Author: | acrossthelines [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 2:56 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
Too cloudy here to see anything... which is unfortunate because where I am in Indiana considerably more stars are visible than there are in Depew. Not as much as where I used to live, though. Hellooooo, Milky Way. |
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| Author: | PuckSniperPensel [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 2:58 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
I feel really bad for you all out there... here in Lake George, I've never seen a night more clear. I got incredibly lucky. Now, I just have to hope that the frequency picks up soon. |
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| Author: | BS1970 [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 3:42 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
Clear night up here in the mountains, but I still only saw a few here and there. The big showing was in Asia. |
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| Author: | Sabres2Sabres [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 4:30 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
It's not even the peak yet for those of us in the US (peaks around 4 AM EST). I was out with a bunch of people from 11 until 3. Saw a good 5-6 really bright, colorful ones that left trails, as well as 5-6 that were dimmer, which isn't bad with the terrible light pollution here. Seeing as how we almost never get to see the Leonids in this area, I'm happy. |
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| Author: | PuckSniperPensel [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 10:23 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
I went out at 4 last night, and the show was awesome. I saw about 1-2 per minute, and many of them had very bright trails... some of them lasting for a second or two after the meteor was gone, almost like a weeping willow fire work. Well worth the lack of sleep. |
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| Author: | icehound [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 11:23 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
THE SKY IS FALLING!! THE SKY IS FALLING!!!!
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| Author: | Skyline_BNR34 [ Tue Nov 17, 2009 6:27 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Leonid Meteor Shower |
acrossthelines wrote: Too cloudy here to see anything... which is unfortunate because where I am in Indiana considerably more stars are visible than there are in Depew. Not as much as where I used to live, though. Hellooooo, Milky Way. Yea, if I still lived where I used to, and on clear nights you'd see HELLO MILKY WAY there. |
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