(meteorobs) Perseid Observations from Central Virginia 09 August to 13 August 2007

[FELIX A MARRTINEZ]

Living in a rural area where our limiting magnitude seems to consistently
stay around 6.0, I am feeling a little "guilty" that I was not able to
observe the past two nights.   However, since I am in the middle of a
Career Transition & Career Quest, I needed to sleep like "normal" people
while going to interviews and networking.  Nevertheless, I did manage to
observe several hundred meteors (218 in almost twelve hours of
observations) over the course of four nights that were comfortably cool
(around 15-18 degrees Celsius).  The sessions break out as follows:

(Aug 9/10 )
Backyard - Outskirts of Madison Heights-Monroe, Virginia
Casually observing from 0515-0605 UT
Sporadic 5.0/Perseid 0.0 Green; 1 sec train and an Alpha Cap 1 Yellow
Limiting Magnitude was 5.8 since summer heat & haze still a factor

(Aug 10/11)
Backyard again
0525-0625 UT     5 Perseids       1 Delta Aquarid       1 Sporadic      
LM 6.0; F.45      clouds interfering often
0625-0725            7 Perseids                                          
  2 Sporadics     LM 6.0; F.40      clouds interfering even more
0735                                                     Alpha Cap 4.0   
     and at 0749 saw a 3rd magnitude Perseid

(Aug 11/12)
Backyard once again
Before 0400UT   saw two Delta Aquarids (1st magnitude and 4th magnitude
meteors)
0410-0425 UT     spotted a zero magnitude Perseid (Blue with one second
train)
0425-0525            Perseid 6.0/Delta Aquarid 4.0 and a 5th magnitude
Sporadic; LM 6.3 but clouded over @ 0445!
After 0525             I did see a zero magnitude green Perseid (through
the clouds)!
0535-0720            Casually observing through "holes" in the clouds saw
7 Perseids, 1 AC, 1 DA and 1 KapCyg
0725-0755             Saw 8 Perseids with LM 6.3 skies, then the clouds
came again and I called it a night

(Aug 12/13)
Rural Property of Friends - Outskirts of Elon, Virginia
0325-0425 UT       10 Perseids       2 Delta Aquarids       1 AC       1
Sporadic                                                  LM 6.4; F .90
0425-0525              18 Perseids       2 Delta Aquarids       1 AC     
 1 Sporadic       1 NIA       1 KapCyg       LM 6.4; F .85
0525-0625              21 Perseids        1 DA                           
                  4 Sporadics                                            
   LM 6.4; F .80
0625-0725              28 Perseids        1 DA     2 NIA                 
           6 Sporadics                                                LM
6.4; F .85
0725-0825              30 Perseids                                       
                       5 Sporadics                                       
        LM 6.4; F .80
0825-0855 (30)    27 Perseids                                            
                  3 Sporadics                      1 Kap Cyg       LM
6.3; F .95

One of the main "distractions" was roving teenagers with white
flashlights, but most including my Wife - Suzannah, Son - Jason and
Daughter-Rebekah really enjoyed the "show."  The highlight for the
majority of us came at 0552 UT with a -5 Perseid (about 15 degrees above
our Northern Horizon) that was Yellow-Blue and left a five-second train
"lingering" in the sky!  Certainly was worth spending some time meteor
observing these nights.  Wish that I could have been able to do two more
nights of observing as the morning sky was a beautiful blue on Tuesday
and this morning, but I had to return to the "reality" of every day life
& living!

                                                      In Meteor Observing
Affinity - Felix A. Martinez