(meteorobs) Observation December 13/14 2010

Michel Vandeputte michelvandeputte at hotmail.com
Wed Dec 29 12:24:22 EST 2010


Hi Pierre

Great great work; this is definitely worth driving a long, long road to 
escape the bad weather in full Winter period! I have already travelled 
several times for this meteor shower and it won't be the last time! This 
year I enjoyed several nights including a partial clear main maximum night 
from my own home town. As usual the shower made a big performance! I counted 
about ~700 Geminids during my official observing periods. All data is 
available on the IMO website.
This is the most powerful of normal annual meteor showers and also my 
favourite number one. I'm just wondering how the shower will develop in the 
upcoming decades; increasing or decreasing...?? All we need on answering 
this question is gathering data and more data...and to hunt for more clear 
skies!
Enjoyed reading your report and pictures. Thanx!

Clear skies to all in 2011 folks!

Michel.
Belgium.



--------------------------------------------------
From: "Pierre Martin" <pmartin at teksavvy.com>
Sent: Tuesday, December 28, 2010 11:37 PM
To: "Global Meteor Observing Forum" <meteorobs at meteorobs.org>
Subject: (meteorobs) Observation December 13/14 2010

> Hello all,
>
> To escape the poor weather a couple of weeks ago, and to seek clear
> dark skies, Raymond Dubois and I drove for 19 hours (1800 km) to
> Georgia (U.S.A.) to catch the Geminids under clear skies.  We were
> determined to see the peak!  It may sound crazy to go that far for a
> single night of observing, but for this meteor shower, I felt it was
> worth it :)  We left Ottawa on the Saturday morning December 11 (with
> my car jammed packed of camping and camera gear), and drove all day on
> Interstate 81.  We stopped to sleep at a motel in Maryland, where we
> had the opportunity to check the latest weather forecasts with
> Raymond's netbook (showing iffy weather throughout Sunday but clear
> and great on Monday).  The following day, we got going at 7 am, and
> for Maryland, it was a bit nippy at -8C.  Our goal was to arrive at
> the Deerlick Astronomy Village in the evening hours.  As we trekked
> further south, the temperature gradually rose, and then declined
> depending on the altitude.  Along a good stretch of the Appalachians
> in Virginia, we would occasionally hit snow and rain.  We saw several
> salt trucks standing by, in case the interstate would turn nasty.
> Fortunately, the roads were in good condition, as the ground appeared
> too warm to freeze or accumulate any significant snow fall or ice.  As
> we moved into the Carolinas along Interstate 77, the change of scenery
> seemed sudden, going from patches of snow along the side of the road
> to green grass, leaves and even palm trees!  The temperature was
> hovering just above freezing, so still a lot colder than usual for
> these areas.
>
> By 7:00pm on Sunday Dec 12, we were rolling into the Deerlick
> Astronomy Village (DAV).  The temperature was a bit below freezing,
> the wind was howling and a few scattered snow flurries were coming
> down (nothing accumulating on the ground though).  Being our first
> time there, and not too sure what to expect, we moved in slowly.  When
> we got to the gate, it was open.  Out at the observing field, the warm
> room cabin was open, and one of the toilet/showers was open as well.
> As it turns out, the DAV owners were expecting us and very kindly
> arranged to make the site as comfortable as possible for us.  Wow!  We
> spent a few minutes looking around the site to familiarize, and we
> were very impressed at the accommodations present there.  What a
> beautiful site... Very dark skies, open horizons with a low tree line,
> well maintained short grass, a large permanent pavilion for star party
> events, multiple AC power outlets along an entire row in the field, RV
> power outlets, two large concrete platforms for setups, internet
> access, a heated cabin with red lights (incl microwave, fridge, water)
> and even another building with hot showers & flush toilets on the
> field!  Compared to any of the observing sites that I am used to at
> home, these accommodations truly felt luxurious.  When Raymond spotted
> an active webcam outside the cabin, facing the observing field, we
> stood outside and waved at it with our lights, just in case someone
> was watching :)  The only thing missing on the Sunday night was clear
> skies.  The cold front was pushing forward, and it was very windy,
> giving a windchill factor as low as -15C.  This meant putting on our
> full layers and our big parkas, like we normally would on very cold
> nights in Ottawa.  Overhead, the low clouds would occasionally break
> to reveal some brief clear holes.  I spent a few minutes just looking
> up, and I enjoyed a few early Geminids.  We were exhausted from the
> long drive, so we didn't mind the poor conditions so much.  A quick
> look up on the internet confirmed that the overcast skies would
> persist, and that it would not clear up for good until morning.  I
> setup my tent while Raymond settled inside the cabin to sleep there.
> After that, it wasn't long before we were both sound asleep.  I woke
> up shortly after 4 am to check the sky, and there was no real
> improvement with lots of low clouds, and just the odd clear break.
> After catching up on sleep through the entire morning (I think it was
> noon when I got up), Raymond and I woke up under sunny skies without a
> single cloud in sight.  We spent the afternoon chatting with some of
> the DAV crew who dropped in to say hi, and we saw the "Village"
> portion of the DAV where several large amateur observatories are setup
> next to houses and cabins... very lovely, truly an astronomical
> observing resort!  Then we drove to the town of Thomson to get a good
> meal and pick up groceries.  Along our way, we got distracted by a
> flock of turkey vultures flying low and surrounding us on a quiet
> road :)  Raymond managed to get some pictures.  Once back at the DAV
> in the late afternoon, we took our time setting up our cameras and
> mounts on one of the concrete platforms.  The Sun was dropping
> quickly, and our anticipation was building.  The sky looked terrific,
> with excellent transparency... not the slightest hint of any haze!
> The strong wind was somewhat subsiding, and the evening weather was
> comfortable at 0C given that we were very well dressed for it.  We
> were ready for a long night of observing!
>
> I signed on for meteors at 7:15pm, just as the Geminids radiant was
> coming up over the north-east horizon.  I also started the camera
> exposures, to try and capture the earthgrazers.  It was interesting to
> see the sky at 33 degrees latitude.  Judging by just how much lower in
> the sky Polaris appeared, the 12 degrees of difference compared to
> Ottawa's was quite evident :)  Orion was seen rising up at a steeper
> angle than I am used to.  Later on in the night, I spotted the second
> brightest star in the night sky, Canopus, low in the south in the
> constellation Carina (something we never get to see in Ottawa).  I was
> impressed at the sky quality with the Quarter Moon lying high up in
> the south-west.  The 5th mag star in Ursa Minor was visible even very
> low in the sky.  Observing for an hour, from 7:15-8:15pm, I saw 10
> Geminids and 2 sporadics.  Nearly half of these meteors were
> earthgrazers.  The most impressive was a mag +3 Geminid seen at 7:53pm
> that travelled over 50 degrees in the north.  It wasn't particularly
> bright but it flared repeatedly and faded out very gradually.  At the
> end of this first hour, I took a two hour break to have supper and
> wait for the Moon to get lower.
>
> When I came out to resume observing at 10:30pm, the sky was
> significantly better.  Geminids were clearly increasing, with some
> bright and longs meteors.  As I walked back to the setups, bright
> GEM's flashed overhead including mag -1 and mag 0 meteors in the
> south, just two seconds apart!  Moments later, a mag 0 Geminid went
> right in front of the Orion nebula!  As I adjusted my cameras, another
> bright Geminid flashed by, this time a mag -2!  With the Moon lower in
> the west, the sky LM was significantly better, reaching mag 6.2 near
> the zenith.  The radiant was also quickly rising in the east.  I was
> eager to get in my chair, inside my warm sleeping bag :)
>
> Between 10:30pm-11:30pm, I saw 50 meteors (47 Geminids, 2 antihelions
> and 1 Monocerotid).  Several colorful Geminids were seen.  The best
> was a mag -4 blue-green Geminid fireball seen at 11:08pm low in the
> south in Eridanus, that left a 1 sec train.  Another notable meteor
> came at 11:26pm... a mag -3 blue-green Geminid low in the south-west.
> I noted five instances of seeing two Geminids appearing within one or
> two seconds of each other, and even two simultaneous Geminids!
>
> The next period between 11:30pm-12:48am, amounted to exactly 1 hour of
> effective observing time (I took a 2 minute break to let a car come
> in, and then a 16 minutes break to wake up Raymond and attend my
> cameras).  The sky was darkening with the setting Moon, averaging mag
> 6.3 at the zenith.  I saw a total of 69 meteors (65 Geminids, 2
> Monocerotids, 1 Sigma Hydrid and 1 antihelion).  Oddly, this hour had
> not one sporadic meteor.  The finest Geminid of the night appeared at
> 11:47pm... It was a brilliant blue-green mag -4 fireball that scooted
> 20 degrees into Eridanus.  It fragmented into two distinct pieces of
> equal brightness, one lagging behind the other slightly.  (Fragmenting
> Geminids are infrequent, but I typically see one or two of these on a
> good night of maximum activity.  When they occur, they are spectacular!)
>
> The next period between 12:48am-2:10am, amounted to a little over an
> hour of effective observing time (breaks and time spent looking down
> subtracted).  With the Moon out of the way, the sky was gorgeous,
> reaching mag 6.6.  The Milky Way was evident and there was a sea of
> faint stars surrounding the bright winter constellations.  The
> Geminids were now kicking into high gear!  It was a busy hour, with a
> total of 137 meteors (120 Geminids, 7 sporadics, 3 antihelions, 2
> Monocerotids, 2 December Leo Minorids, 1 Puppid-Velid, 1 Sigma Hydrid
> and 1 Coma Berenicid).  At times, several Geminids came in a short
> span of time, or even within seconds apart!  One particularly
> impressive burst was the 7 Geminids appearing within a single minute!
> I was sometimes busy enough that I felt urged to speak rather quickly
> in my tape recorder :)  No fireballs were seen during this hour - the
> GEM's had a good share of both dim and bright meteors.  The most
> impressive meteor of this hour came at 1:05am... It was a 50 degrees
> long mag +3 sporadic earthgrazer that dropped fragments as it moved
> slowly, taking several seconds to cross the sky from Ursa Major to
> Gemini.
>
> At 2:10am, I reluctantly signed off.  I suddenly felt ill with an
> upset stomach, and couldn't continue.  It was disappointing to stop
> observing, with the gorgeous sky overhead and Geminids flying left and
> right.  I went inside the warm cabin and settled in to rest, hoping
> that I'd be OK for some more observing in an hour or two.  Instead, I
> was clearly out of action for the remainder of the night.  Raymond
> continued to observe through the early morning hours, and took care of
> handling all of the camera equipment at the end (merci Raymond!).
>
> Despite this set back, it was a terrific night, and at least all the
> cameras worked continuously without any issues until morning dawn.  I
> ended up observing over 4 hours of effective observing time, and saw a
> total of 268 meteors (242 Geminids, 9 sporadics, 6 antihelions, 5
> Monocerotids, 2 Sigma Hydrids, 2 December Leo Minorids, 1 Puppid-Velid
> and 1 Coma Berenicid).  So I certainly consider the night and the trip
> to be a success!
>
> After sleeping through the morning, I woke up feeling better and was
> able to have a light breakfast.  Raymond and I packed the remaining
> equipment, and we took off for the long 2 day road trip back home.
>
> I'd like to express my appreciation to Chris Hetlage, Mike Boni and
> Jerry Tarter who graciously welcomed us at DAV and made the experience
> as comfortable and enjoyable as possible for us.  What a great
> location!  If the long distance wasn't a factor, I would want to do
> all my observing there.  It goes without a doubt that I'll keep DAV in
> mind in case of future travel plans to the southern U.S. :)
>
> NAMN report copied below:
>
> Clear skies,
>
> Pierre Martin
> Ottawa, Ontario
>
>
>
> DATE: December 13/14 2010
> BEGIN: 00:15 UT (19:15 EST) END: 07:10 UT (02:10 EST)
> OBSERVER: Pierre Martin (MARPI)
> LOCATION: Long: -82 45' 47" West; Lat: 33 33' 41" North
> City & Province: Deerlick Astronomy Village, Georgia, USA
> RECORDING METHOD: talking clock/tape recorder, cord align
> ----------------------------------------------------------
>
> OBSERVED SHOWERS:_______________________________radiant position
>
> GEM (Geminids)__________________________________07:28 (112) +32
> ANT (Antihelions)_______________________________06:12 (093) +23
> MON (Monocerotids)______________________________06:48 (102) +08
> PUP (Puppid-Velids)_____________________________08:08 (126) -45
> HYD (Sigma Hydrids)_____________________________08:16 (129) +02
> COM (Coma Berenicids)___________________________11:30 (172) +19
> DLM (December Leo Minorids - IMO video)_________10:22 (155) +34
> DAD (December Alpha Draconids - IMO video)______14:00 (210) +58
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------
>
> OBSERVING PERIODS: 0 = none seen; / = shower not observed
>
> PERIOD(UT)___Teff__FOV___LM____GEM__SPO_ANT_MON_PUP_HYD_COM_DLM_DAD
>
> 00:15-01:15__1.00__E50___5.35___10___2___0___/___/___/___/___/___/
> 03:30-04:30__1.00__SE50__6.18___47___0___2___1___/___0___/___/___/
> 04:30-05:48__1.00__SE50__6.30___65___0___1___2___0___1___0___0___0
> 05:48-07:10__1.15__S50___6.53___120__7___3___2___1___1___1___2___0
>
> TOTALS:______4.15_______________242__9___6___5___1___2___1___2___0  =
> 268
>
>
> Note: The first column (Period UT) refers to the observed periods, in
> Universal Time. The second column (TEFF) is the effective observing
> time, it is minutes/60.  The column FOV is the general direction I was
> looking in the sky (i.e. E50 = east at 50 degrees elevation).  The
> column (LM) is the average naked eye limiting magnitude, determined by
> the triangle star counts method.  All following columns indicate the
> number of meteors for each shower observed.
> ------------------------
>
> MAGNITUDE DISTRIBUTIONS:
>
> SHOWER
> _____-4__-3__-2__-1___0__+1__+2__+3__+4__+5______AVE
>
> GEM___2___1___2___8__18__23__45__55__56__32_____+2.64
> SPO___0___0___0___0___0___1___1___3___2___2_____+3.33
> ANT___0___0___0___0___1___3___0___1___1___0_____+1.66
> MON___0___0___0___0___0___0___2___1___2___0_____+3.00
> HYD___0___0___0___0___0___1___0___0___0___1_____+3.00
> DLM___0___0___0___0___0___0___1___0___1___0_____+3.00
> PUP___0___0___0___0___0___0___0___0___1___0_____+4.00
> COM___0___0___0___0___0___0___1___0___0___0_____+2.00
>
> Note: Magnitude -8 is comparable to a quarter moon, magnitude -4 with
> the planet Venus, magnitude -1 with the brightest star Sirius,
> magnitude +2 to +3 with most average naked eye stars and magnitude +6
> to +7 are the faintest stars the naked eye can see under typical dark
> conditions. A meteor of at least magnitude -3 is considered a fireball
> (IMO definition). The above table contains the magnitudes from all
> observed meteors, and the average (last column) for showers.
> ------------------------
>
> SKY OBSCURED (FOV) (UT):  None
>
> ------------------------
>
> Dead time: 31 min (breaks)
>
> Breaks (UT): 4:38-39, 4:43-44, 5:30-46, 6:18-31
>
>
>
>
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