(meteorobs) Obs: 12/13 Aug 2008

[pmartsching at mchsi.com]

13 Aug 2008 07:20-09:45 UT (CDST 12/13 Aug 02:20-09:45am)

Paul Martsching
McFarland Park 4 miles NE of Ames, Story County, Iowa
Long: 93 deg 34 min W  Lat: 42 deg 05 min N  Elevation: ~1040 feet
Method: Visual; paper, pencil & talking clock

I went out about an hour before Moon set to see what could be seen in the bright
Moon light.  There was considerable ground fog on the way out and some cloud in
the West.  It didn't look promising.  

In the "clearest" 20 minutes before I nearly gave up and went home I saw:
facing NE 50 deg; aver.lim.mag.~4.5; fog; haze/thin cloud; Moon low in West
Kappa Cygnid: one: +3
Perseids: seven: -1; 0; +1(3); +2; +4
Sporadics: one: +3
Total meteors: nine (in 0.34 hour; 06:15-06:35.); then quickly clouded out.

I waited a while and to my surprise the Moon came out into clear sky very low in
the West below the clouds.  So I decided to wait it out till clear sky arrived.

07:20-08:20; 59 degrees F; calm; fog; average cloud cover 5%; average limiting
magnitude 5.5; 07:20 facing NNW 50 degrees; 07:30 facing N 50 degrees; 07:35
facing NE 50 degrees (clearest and darkest part of sky); total teff 1.0 hour
Antihelion: none
Kappa Cygnid: none
Perseids: twenty-one: -2; -1; 0(3); +1(5); +2(6); +3(4); +4
Sporadics: four: +1; +2; +3(2)
Total meteors: twenty-five

08:20-09:20; 59 degrees F; calm; fog; clear; average limiting magnitude 5.7;
facing NE 50 degrees; total teff 1.0 hour
Antihelion: one: -3; yellow with brief train
Kappa Cygnid: none
Perseids: twenty-one: -2(2); -1; 0(3); +1(5); +2(5); +3(4); +5
Sporadics: six: +2; +3(3); +4(2)
Total meteors: twenty-eight

09:20-09:45; 58 degrees F; calm; fog; clear; average limiting magnitude 5.6;
9:20 facing NE 50 degrees; 9:40 facing North 50 degrees; total teff: ~0.42 hour
(25 minutes)
Antihelion: none
Kappa Cygnid: none
Perseids: ten: -4; -1; 0; +1(2); +2(2); +3(2); +4
Sporadics: four: -1; +1; +3(2)
Total meteors: fourteen (25 minutes)

The highlight of the session was a -4 yellow Perseid at 09:40 which ended 10
degrees above the N horizon below the Bowl of the Little Dipper.  The train
lasted 5 seconds - but was in the upper part of the fog.  I was observing on the
observatory "hump" which is only a few feet higher than the surrounding land,
but the surrounding landscape was covered with dense ground fog, while the hump
was "relatively free" of fog.

Forty-four percent of the Perseids had trains.

It was completely overcast all night 11/12 August.