(meteorobs) Nov., 16/17 2015 Leonid/Taurid obs from North Florida - LEOs pushing 20/hour!

[Michel Vandeputte]

Great reports again from George G., Paul J., and Paul M. 
If you have clear skies; go hunt for Leonids! 

Good luck to all, 



Michel Vandeputte
 

Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2015 08:31:05 -0500
From: jonesp0854 at gmail.com
To: meteorobs at meteorobs.org
Subject: (meteorobs) Nov.,	16/17 2015 Leonid/Taurid obs from North Florida - LEOs pushing	20/hour!

Hello again meteor fans,              Once again this morning, Mother Nature came to my rescue at the last moment and allowed me two lovely hours of pre-dawn Leonid watching from the Hastings, Florida potato field.  I got there a bit before 0300 EST and was greeted by an overcast sky.  I decided to hang out and give it a few minutes to clear up and in less than ten minutes all the clouds had vanished!          What was behind the clouds was astonishing!  One of the darkest, sharpest, clearest night skies I've seen in quite awhile.  And they stayed that way for exactly two hours before the clouds decided to return.  I was saying my thank yous, I can assure you!         Leonid activity was pretty much steady, slowly climbing during the watch as the radiant did also and approached 20 an hour before the clouds shut me down.   No fireballs of any flavor were seen, but there were a few nice LEOs, a -1 South Taurid and a gorgeous member from each of the November iota Draconids  (NID) and November Orionids (NOO) radiants.   All told, I was very grateful indeed for the opportunity to observe at all! Here's what I had: Nov., 16/17 2015, Observer: Paul Jones, Location: Hastings, Florida (18 miles southwest of St. Augustine, Florida, Facing: south. 0300 - 0400 EST (0800 - 0900 UT), Teff: 1.0 hour, LM: 6.8, clear11 LEO: 0, +1, +2 (2), +3 (4), +4 (3)1 NTA: +21 STA: +31 NOO: +1 9 SPO: 0, +2 (2), +3 (2), +4 (3), +523 total meteors  0400 - 0500 EST (0900 -1000 UT) , Teff: 1.0 hour, LM: 6.8, clear17 LEO: 0, +1 (2), +2 (3), +3 (2), +4 (5), +5 (4)2 NTA: -1, +31 STA: +31 NID: 010 SPO: +1 (2), +2 (2), +3 (2), +4 (3), +531 total meteors          It seemed strange to me that the two best meteors of the watch were from the two minor radiants and neither one was a Leonid or a Taurid! The NOO was a long, showy +1 in southern Orion and Lepus, while the NID was even better, a zero mag almost earthgrazer that covered 40 degrees of sky in Gemini and Orion and left a nice train.  The off-speed, medium velocity of each meteor was clearly noticeable as opposed to either the swift Leonids or the slow Taurids.           Dare I should hope that my luck continues for one more morning?  I am most interested in seeing where the Leonids go from here.  Do their rates stay the same, rise even more or do they drop off again?  Although they were quite evident this morning, I would hardly call them either memorable or spectacular at this point.  They have definitely left some room for improvement IMHO.  Inquiring minds want to know...;o).  Good luck to all! Clear skies, Paul J in North Florida     

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