(meteorobs) Obs: 5/6 September 2010

[pmartsching at mchsi.com]

06 September 2010 04:45-08:30 UT (05/06 Sept 11:45pm - 02:30am CDST)

I'd thought I might get clouded out, but when I looked at the satellite imagery at 9 pm it looked like the clouds were moving eastward and may be a clear spot would occur.  I got up at 11:15 and the satellite image showed the cloud cover had diminished and there was a big clear area overhead, so I went out.  Because of the wind only one mosquito bothered me.  The best meteor of the session was a slow mag. -3 orange sporadic at 05:37 UT that began 10 deg S of Cassiopeia and ended 3 deg SE of the Pleiades. Lots of distant lightening in the South and Southeast thru out the session.  Clouds moving due East with ground wind out of SE.  

McFarland Park 4 miles NE of Ames, Story County, IA, USA

Antihelion
Nu Eridanids
September Epsilon Perseids
Sporadics

04:45-05:45 UT; 69 deg F; dew pt 58 deg F; wind SE 13 mph; clear; some horizon haze; distant thunder storms in S and SE; LM 5.6; facing NE 50 deg first 50 minutes, facing E 50 deg last 10 minutes because of clouds in N; total teff 1.0 hour.
Antihelion: two: +2(2)
SPE: none
Sporadics: six: -3; 0; +1(2); +3; +4
Total meteors: eight

05:45-06:45 UT; 68 deg F; dew pt 58 deg F; wind SE 14 mph gusting to 22 mph; mostly clear; some horizon haze; distant thunder storms in S and SE; average LM 5.4, some small patches of thin haze passing thru during last 5 minutes; facing NE 50 deg; total teff 1.0 hour.
Antihelion: one: +3
SPE: none
Sporadics: three: -1; +4(2)
Total meteors: four

06:45-07:45 UT; 66 deg F; dew pt 58 deg F; wind SE 13 mph; mostly clear; some horizon haze; distant thunder storms in S and SE; average LM 5.2, some patches of thin haze passing thru; facing NE 50 deg; total teff 1.0 hour.
Antihelion: one: +3
SPE: none
Sporadics: four: +1; +3(2); +4
Total meteors: five 


07:45-08:30 UT; 66 deg F; dew pt 57 deg F; wind SE 15 mph gusting to 22 mph; mostly clear; horizon haze; still distant thunder storms in SE; generally facing NE 50 deg, but from time to time facing E 50 deg, or N 50 deg to avoid clouds; average LM 5.0, large patches of thin haze; 10% more dense cloud cover in FOV; total teff 0.75 hour.
Antihelion: none
Nu Eridanid: one: 0 with train
SPE: one: +4
Sporadics: two: +1; +4
Total meteors: four (forty-five minutes)

No prospect of sky conditions improving so went home.