(meteorobs) Re: Visual Plotting

[Ed Majden]

on 8/8/05 14:26, Kim Youmans at meteorsga at bellsouth.net wrote:

> If  I may add to what Felix and others have already noted, the accuracy
> notation would also have to do with confidence in the actual placement of
> the plot line on the map -- how sure is the observer that he/she has plotted
> the meteor correctly.
> 
> This is important, as I have witnessed three *experienced* observers plot
> the same meteor (myself being one of the three)-- a bright -2 with a long
> path length -- differently.  Not *too* differently, but  with such a long
> path length, more error will creep in, and establishing a radiant would be
> quite difficult.
> 
> Just my 02/100 of a dollar...
> 
> Kim Youmans
> 
    I agree with Kim.  We used Dominion Observatory Sterographic Projection
Meteor Plotting Charts back in the 1950's.  See: Meteor Science and
Engineering by McKinley, Fig. 3-2 on page 49 in my hard cover edition.
Errors did creep in.  Only very experienced observers with high familiarity
with star positions came close to good plots.  It would be an interesting
experiment to check plot positions against a guided photo of the same meteor
track.  The visual track would of course be longer because the eye is more
sensitive than film.  Perhaps this could be tried with a sensitive video
recording system today.
It would be interesting to see the results of such an experiment.

Ed Majden  B.C. - Fireball Network Coordinator
West Coast Sandia Bolide Detection Station
Courtenay B.C. CANADA

http://members.shaw.ca/epmajden/index.htm