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Leonid Meteor Shower Delights Many
Associated Press ^
| November 18, 2001
| By ANDREW BRIDGES, AP Science Writer
Posted on 11/18/2001 9:21:33 AM PST by MeekOneGOP
Sunday November 18 10:47 AM ET
Leonid Meteor Shower Delights Many
By ANDREW BRIDGES, AP Science Writer
MOUNT WILSON, Calif. (AP) - Even veteran stargazers were amazed with the light show thousands of tiny meteors gave them early Sunday.
This year's much-anticipated Leonids shower delighted people around the world who stayed up late or woke up early to see it, including a meteor-watching party of about 75 people atop Mount Wilson, northeast of Los Angeles.
Every few seconds at least a bit of space dust burned harmlessly into the atmosphere. The brightest flares left shimmering trails that hung for a few seconds.
``There are the little 'eeee' ones, then there are the 'ooooh' ones - those ones you have to stand up and follow with your head,'' said Susan Kitchens, a writer and artist at the Mount Wilson party.
``I've never seen it like this. I don't recall seeing this many meteors - ever,'' said Rick Yessayian, a sixth-grade teacher in Montebello who for nine years has helped organize the Mount Wilson party.
The shower was less intense than the 4,000 per minute some had predicted, but nonetheless it was a more impressive display than astronomers have seen in years.
Between 800 and 1,000 meteors were falling an hour at the peak of the shower between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. EST, said Mitzi Adams, astrophysicist for NASA (news - web sites)'s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.
One observer in New York reported seeing three to five meteors a minute even after dawn broke, she added.
The Leonids are minute dust particles shed by Comet Tempel-Tuttle. The meteors are called Leonids because they appear to come from the direction of the constellation Leo the Lion.
The comet swings around the sun once every 33 years, leaving a trail of dust. Each November, the Earth's orbit takes it through that slowly dissipating trail.
Comet Tempel-Tuttle most recently passed close to the sun in February 1998. However, the dust particles seen as shooting stars across North America on Sunday were shed during a 1766 pass.
Those particles, each no larger than a grain of sand, enter the atmosphere traveling 45 miles a second. When they meet the friction of air molecules, they burn up harmlessly, leaving only a brilliant streak of light.
But for the estimated 630 operational satellites in orbit around the Earth, the particles can be deadly. Many satellite operators, in preparation for the shower, turn the spacecraft to shield them from the meteoroids or shut down electronic operations.
In 1966, observers couldn't count the shooting stars fast enough. Estimates ranged as high as 150,000 per hour. Astronomers expect another such shower in 2099. Next year Leonid watchers probably will be foiled by a full moon, which is expected to wash out the sky with its brightness.
Comets are believed to contain pristine examples of the materials that coalesced 4.5 billion years ago to form the solar system. The frozen balls of ice and debris are rich with basic elements like iron, as well as carbon-based molecules. Some scientists believe this is how Earth was seeded with organic compounds when it was repeatedly pelted with comets early in its history.
At least four U.S. and European spacecraft missions are expected to study comets from up close over the next decade.
-
On the Net:
http://leonids.arc.nasa.gov
http://LeonidsLive.com
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A meteor streaks through the sky over Joshua Tree National Monument in the Southern California desert, one of hundreds seen in the early morning hours of Sunday, Nov. 18, 2001. The meteor's fiery entry into Earth's atmosphere takes just about a second in this time exposure of one minute, causing slight blurring of the stars in the sky. This year's much-anticipated Leonids shower delighted people around the world who stayed up late or woke up early to see it. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)
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To: MeeknMing
I got up at 2AM to watch it in Poulsbo, WA. Beautiful, clear but cold evening. This was truly spectacular and we once saw seven in a period of ten seconds. My wife and I watched for about 45 minutes and it never really let up from a rate of about 5 - 10 per minute (that we could see) in all areas of the sky.
To: MeeknMing
Truly a beautiful show. The long ones with the shimmering tails were incredible. I was watching along the coast in Orange County California and even with the light "pollution" we could a couple every minute. Quite an awe inspiring sight.
3
posted on
11/18/2001 9:34:42 AM PST
by
stilts
To: Grampa7030
Down here in So. Cal. in a very remote location from 1:30 to 3 a.m. we saw 30 to 40 per minute, one of the best showers I've seen in years.
4
posted on
11/18/2001 9:37:09 AM PST
by
RHammm
To: RHammm
We watched here in Maryland. It was inspiring!
5
posted on
11/18/2001 9:57:54 AM PST
by
Bigg Red
To: Grampa7030
I got up at 2AM to watch it in Poulsbo, WA. Beautiful, clear but cold!I got up at one o'clock in the morning of the 18th and stayed up until 5:00am saw one earthgrazer traveling from east to west horizontally about half way above the horizon for about 40 degrees before it burned out.
That kept me up for the four hours I was outside waiting on the next remarkable sighting.
Outside of a few very dim and exceptionally short spurts of almost no magnitude and which if you weren't looking in that direction you would miss them.
These unremarkable sightings were occurring very high in the bowl of the sky and weren't worth the loss of 4 hours of sleep except for the one fanstastic "shot across the bow" of heaven.
Visibility was fantastic, about 45 degrees above the horizon for about 180 degrees of the circle,east to west horizontally.
The viewing locale, geographically, was about 240 surface miles east of El Paso. Texas on I-20.The event was practically a noshow.
I demand a refund!!
6
posted on
11/18/2001 10:01:42 AM PST
by
VOYAGER
To: MeeknMing
I waited weeks for it, researched were best to go outside Chicago and was anxiosuly waiting to leave on a two hour trek to join a farm party from the Adler Planetrium. then bam, about 7pm in rolls the fog blanketed by extreme clouds everywhere and I was so disappointed I could cry at this lost chance of a lifetime.
By the way I have family minutes from mount Wilson! Those lucky gazsers ;(
7
posted on
11/18/2001 12:41:18 PM PST
by
JustPiper
To: MeeknMing
Woke up, walked outside, saw four of 'em. Figured "big deal", walked back inside and went back to sleep. About the only thing I got out of it was that my cold got ten times worse. >:(
To: MeeknMing
I watched in Alabama beginning at about 4:30 a.m.. Many of them left flourescent green trails. It was absolutely AWESOME!!!!!! You couldn't look at one without another appearing in the corner of your eye. One of the coolest things I have ever seen.
9
posted on
11/18/2001 12:44:40 PM PST
by
kcat
To: MeeknMing
We had solid cloud cover in Dallas, last night, just my luck.
To: MeeknMing
I went outside here in eastern Washington at about 12:00 or 12:30am and looked up and seen about three awesome ones, one had a tail that covered half the sky. Went in grabbed a blanket and pillows and sat outside for about 15 minutes and didn't see anymore. I'm sure it was great a little later.
To: TEXASPROUD
We had solid cloud cover in Dallas, last night, just my luck.
You and my cousin in North Dallas.
I got localize fog/haze here in West Los Angels...but folks further inland (and higher up)
such as MT. Wilson apparently got a great show.
12
posted on
11/18/2001 12:56:05 PM PST
by
VOA
To: Grampa7030
I envy you. Cloud cover ruined my view. In January or February of 1979 (1980?) the umbra of a total solar eclipse passed directly over my location. Cloud cover ruined my view then, too. The change from daylight to darkness back to daylight again was impressive, but not nearly as impressive as I had been hoping for.
To: MeeknMing
I woke up at 5 AM, skies clear, could see stars, and that's is all I saw. What a waste of time. I was glad I was able to go back to sleep.
14
posted on
11/18/2001 1:11:49 PM PST
by
Coleus
To: Coleus
Got my kids up at 0300, went to the back yard and had a great time watching the show! Excellent!
15
posted on
11/18/2001 1:14:48 PM PST
by
Crimson
To: MeeknMing
Partial Vanity Warning. I wandered my wooded lot from about 10:30 till 11:30 looking in the east as told. Low colds but stars were visible over head. Came in and out for a while while watching NASA. Fially Mzz Mitzi Adams told me I was looking in the wrong place so I srepped out on the deck and looked due south and there was Orion bright and clear. It was 12:30 PDT here in Eureka Ca. as I slipped off my clothes , grabbed a glass of wine and jumped in the hot tub. It was 1:30 and at 1:35 I saw my first meteor. THAT WAS IT. for the next hour I sipped and watched. Nothing Nada Zilch! 2:30 I crawled out lookin like a albino prune and checked on Mzz Mitzi as she was ranting on about all the neat streaks and at that time I realized this was the moon landing all over again and she was laying in her sleeping bag on the back lot of Disney Studios. I did finally see about 25 in about 15 minutes before clouds shut it down.
To: tubebender
I was dead tired this morning when I hit the sack at 2:30. It was clear until just before then and every time I went out to my backyard, no meteors. Perhaps I didn't stay out long enough at a stretch, or the local lights were just not helping? Either way, once the clouds rolled in, I was finished - dead tired too. I usually call it a night by 9 or 9:30 because I usually get up real early. That's all right. I plan on catching the next "Really Big Shew" in 2099! Oh, yeah - you betcha! ;-)
To: Coleus
What a waste of time. I was glad I was able to go back to sleep.
;-( Sorry - my experience as well.
Location: The Garbage State
That's funny! ;-)
To: MeeknMing
The chicks and I had a great view here in Charleston from 3:30 - 6:00. Getting to church on time was murder!
And the Gamecocks beat the Tigers! Man it just doesn't get any better than this!
To: MeeknMing
My wife and I went to a nearby state park, to get away from the stretlights, etc, and watched for two hours until it finally fizzled out around 6am EST. We just kept saying WOW!, THERE'S ANOTHER ONE!, OOOH!, etc.
And all day today I've been thinking bout how much fun we had last night. It was chilly, about 34 degrees, but we were dressed for it and had a great time. Sorry for the folks who had clouds. I am very thankful we were able to see it all on a clear night.
20
posted on
11/18/2001 2:27:20 PM PST
by
Huck
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