(meteorobs) RE: Explosion Observed

[Kim Youmans]

IMHO, point meteors fall well within the odds of probability and thus should 
never be discounted wholly on that criteria alone.
If point meteors are rare (and of course they are) how much rarer would it 
be to see a point meteor "leaving" (perhaps) the earth, rather than heading 
for it, to wit, my observation of an earthgrazing meteor that ended in a 
point of light -- as it headed away from me...observed and posted Feb. 28, 
2004.  Now, the observation, reposted below, certainly
does not fit the classic definition of a point meteor but is an example of a 
meteor becoming a motionless (to the observer)
point of light.  For me, it was simply an amazing meteor!

Kim Youmans

***************************************************
Near the end of my watch, I caught a glimpse of a brighter
 meteor peripherally from the north, directly behind me.
I arched back and looked up, and the show began.  Perhaps
this slow moving meteor had been at 0 magnitude when
I first looked up and saw it, in southern Draco, but as it
passed through Corona Borealis -- moving *very, very*
slowly -- it settled into a +1 magnitude and for the rest
of its flight, it never varied from that. I got a great
view of it, as it crawled across the sky, with a
one-to-three degree wake, and a very distinct head.  As
it continued, my jaw began to drop -- this one wasn't
about to fade out!  As it, finally, approached western
Scorpio, it seemed to slow just a bit and the tail/wake
shortened until, when it reached Lupus, it was a point
meteor sitting motionless in that constellation!  An
amazing sight! It hung, an univited guest star, in Lupus
for another three seconds, at least.  All in all, I'd guess
the meteor lasted a good 12-15 seconds!!! I observed it
travel at least 90 degrees; who knows how northerly it
was when it first appeared in the sky.  It was quite wide
and distinctly yellow, with the slightest hint of a train,
perhaps, behind the wake.
    My impression was that as the meteor dropped down
to near my "eye level" along the horizon, the *dramatic*
foreshortening to a point showed it's path back out into
space...I was especially well placed as the meteor had
passed directly overhead!
******************************************* 



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