(meteorobs) Meteor Trail? [Photos]

[Lewis J. Gramer]

Thanks for posting that thread from the 'debris-locators' list,
Robert. (What a great name for an email forum! ;>) The URL at
the bottom showing Jim's original photos was especially helpful:

> > http://www.ojaiayso.org/_skytrail/default.htm


And Jim, I agree - those are some very nice photos! Others who
have a look at those online shots will have their own opinions,
but I would say it is very hard to tell from those pics, if you
saw a contrail, a meteor dust trail, or meteor persistent train.

Now, I have witnessed one persistent train - during the 1998
Leonid fireball "storm" - that was about magnitude -4. (The meteor
that caused it was magnitude -12!) So it IS possible that this was
a "glowing" persistent train, as opposed to a "reflecting" dust
trail - though I agree with Kim Youmans that it is less likely...


One other question for my fellow readers: this object is clearly
in the West - so if it WERE a dust trail, wouldn't it have to be
dust which was REFRACTING sunlight, to glow in that way? Does the
high-altitude debris trail left by a major fireball have dust
which would refract light at visual wavelengths in this way??

(It may, for all I know: aren't Noctilucent Clouds the result of
some effect very much like this?)


A contrail, on the other hand, which is composed of ice crystals,
could surely refract light in this way: anyone who's ever seen a
"sun dog", a sun column or similar effect can attest that. And of
course, most folks have probably seen contrails to their West at
sunset... Also, the length of the object really does NOT preclude
it's being a contrail: I know I often see contrails (or segments
of a longer "dashed line" contrail) in the skies over Boston MA,
which appear as short as just a few degrees long from the ground.


BTW, would there be any data that was publicly accessible, from
seismic detectors West of Jim's location in Mojave? I have heard
(though I don't know the details) that major fireballs actually
can leave a distinctive seismic signature with ground detectors,
at least under certain circumstances. This might be a "positive
only" test, to determine what Jim and his family saw... In other
words, if seismographs showed a signature - bingo! If such data
was examined from appropriate locations, though, and it DIDN'T
show any such signature - well, then, we might never know. ;-)


Clear skies all!
Lew Gramer



> -----Original Message-----
> From: meteorobs-bounces at meteorobs.org
> [mailto:meteorobs-bounces at meteorobs.org] On Behalf Of Robert Verish
> Sent: Friday, September 24, 2004 5:22 PM
> To: meteorobs at meteorobs.org
> Subject: (meteorobs) FW: Meteor Trail? - Photos
>
>
> Yes Peter,
>
> Here is an example of some of the comments:
>
> ------------ Attached Text------------
>
> To: debris-locators at yahoogroups.com