Leonid Meteor Shower This Weekend

Manuel

I read on AI that they will peak on Saturday night, but should be visible for a few days before and after the 17th.

In a cloudy country like ours, this should afford us some opportunity to spot a few meteors. I'm going to coax the kids out to the back garden over the weekend and try spot a few.

I'm hoping to start maybe Friday night, and I'll post what I see, hopefully leading up to a decent rate of meteors on Sat night, weather-permitting, once I have my eye in :-) ...

jfSDAS

While the Leonids are one of the regular annual meteor showers, their rates are very variable.

You'll see the term ZHR (Zenithal Hourly Rate) quoted in various tables and this is a theoretical value for the number of meteors expected to be seen. It is based on the point of origin of the meteors (radiant source) being overhead, no Moonlight, and stars visible to the unaided eye limit (magnitude 6.5). The true number of meteors seen is always much lower.

Will you see any Leonids this year? Well, maybe a handful but I'd say that's about it. The rates are low at the moment and although a spike in the levels is predicted for 2012 (see http://feraj.narod.ru/Radiants/Predictions/Leonids2012eng.html ), they won't be that bright.

Also, the radiant for the Leonids doesn't rise until after midnight, so observing after the witching hour is a must. The International Meteor Organisation's annual calendar has more details at http://www.imo.net/calendar/2012

Far better maybe get the kids out observing the Geminids next month. They are far richer than the Leonids and visibile earlier in the night. I've counted rates as high as 110 ZHR before.

Clear skies!

John

Pat Dunne

I should imagine that early Sunday morning between 1:00am and 3:00am should be the best time to view them, keeping an eye to the North East and South East, high up.

At last the sun lounger will come in handy for something this year

JJJJNR

Didn't see anything this morning, but got some practice at some low light photography just wondering would Glendalough lakes be a good spot for this.?

Manuel

Viewing from 22.45 to 22.55 here in the Midlands:

Total meteors: 0


This despite it being a spectacularly bright clear sky.

On any night of the year, you'd expect to see two shooting stars in 10 minutes in a sky like this .... anyway, I'll try again in an hour .....

nanook5

I saw one Around half eight .
It was Really cool and very bright and vanished really quickly :rolleyes:

shedweller

Not what you'd call a shower eh? Good seeing conditions though.

Manuel

23.25 - 23:35:

Sum total meteors: 1 (maybe - out of the corner of my eye ...)


Very disappointing so far ... couldn't ask for better viewing conditions ....

Blingy

Saw one about 15 minutes ago. I'm in Wicklow by the coast and the conditions are perfect for star gazing.

DubOnHoliday

Blingy wrote: »

Saw one about 15 minutes ago. I'm in Wicklow by the coast and the conditions are perfect for star gazing.

Also saw just one in about two hours of looking!

Manuel

Viewing from 00.45 to 01.00 here in the Midlands:

Number of meteors: 3


Not much of a shower in my book ..... all low in the Eastern sky at least ...


Will have one more go at 02.00 - just for the hell of it ....

Manuel

02.05 - 02.25:

Number meteors: 9


Just about enough to hold the interest.

Beautiful night anyway for stargazing ....


Night night ...

Gin77

I saw one on the Tramore around 8.30pm yesterday. Also this morning I saw white tails in the sky. Thought I was going mad until I looked here.

Popoutman

Gin77 wrote: »

I saw one on the Tramore around 8.30pm yesterday. Also this morning I saw white tails in the sky. Thought I was going mad until I looked here.

The white tails are completely unrelated to any meteors. Meteors, especially those associated with meteor showers, appear at heights greater than 60km. where the contrails from planes form at 12km at the highest.

Gin77

Popoutman wrote: »

The white tails are completely unrelated to any meteors. Meteors, especially those associated with meteor showers, appear at heights greater than 60km. where the contrails from planes form at 12km at the highest.

Not sure what you mean?
I have seen white tails before years ago, there were dozens of them in the sky going the same direction. Not sure at what the height they were as they looked bloody high.
Any I thought it could be related.
Has anyone seen white tails in the sky before?

Tzetze

I went to a local dark site on the night before the peak. Left my camera pointed at Leo while it went through a series of 30s exposures until the dawn broke. I got a few interesting shots out of it...

Not sure if this is a satellite or a meteor. I suspect it's a satellite, but it seems to come out of the radiant which leaves me unsure...


Possibly a few faint meteors in this shot or more satellites?...


I haven't checked Heaven's Above to verify, but I'm pretty sure this was the ISS...

ZeRoY

Some of these have to be Meteor, at least the first one (head bigger than tail?)

Nice work!

Popoutman

Gin77 wrote: »

Not sure what you mean?
I have seen white tails before years ago, there were dozens of them in the sky going the same direction. Not sure at what the height they were as they looked bloody high.
Any I thought it could be related.
Has anyone seen white tails in the sky before?

Straight white thin clouds would be normal contrails from planes, and wispy curved clouds would be cirrus clouds, and these form at heights less than 12km as that's as high as the planes fly, and as high as those clouds form.

Meteors from meteor showers very rarely leave any form of lasting trail and any that would form would usually disperse in a fairly short time (<30 min). Any white trails in the sky after a meteor shower is nothing more than coincidence.

As for the Leonids, I was out for a bit, but I saw none that were shower-related. I did see two sporadics, which were nice enough but not Leonids.

Daffodil.d

Are the Leonoids completely finished now. Is the next one the geminids and if so when do they start. excuse any bad spelling.