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METEOR STORMS (Leonids etc.)

Going Deeper: Telescopic Meteors

MeteorObs -
an Internet forum for meteor observers of all levels


Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about 'meteorobs'...

+ METEORS? + METEOR OBSERVING? + I SAW A FIREBALL... + DID I SEE IT LAND? + EMAIL ADDRESSES + WEB FORMS + METEOR STORMS (LEONIDS)?

METEORS?

Meteor astronomy or "meteorics" is the area of astronomy dealing with the study of meteors, or shooting stars. A meteor results when a particle in space (actually called a "meteoroid") enters the earth's atmosphere with a high initial velocity and ionizes the gasses there, producing visible light and a fiery "train". By recording and studying the characteristics of these fiery meteoroid deaths, astronomers can learn more about the composition and origins of the solar system, dynamics in our own atmosphere, the orbits and history of comets and asteroids, and even some things about our own human sensory apparatus! (Some people "just want to enjoy the show" if a very rich meteor shower peak is occurring! If this best describes your interest in meteors, then consider subscribing to the very low-volume, "announcements-only" mailing list 'MeteorShowers'.)

METEOR OBSERVING?

Meteor observing represents a unique opportunity for the amateur astronomer for two reasons: 1. There are very few professional scientists in the world studying meteors, so any quality data which an amateur can gather is very valuable, and 2. The most common technique for observing meteors involves nothing more complex than your unaided eye, and a clipboard or tape recorder. No telescopes, strip charts, or other doohickeys required! For this reason, amateur meteorics has been called "the last bastion of unaided-eye astronomy". To learn more about meteors, meteoroids, and meteor observing, visit some of the Web sites in our Link section, or subscribe to the mailing list and ask some of the most experienced meteor observers in the world!

I JUST SAW A BRIGHT SHOOTING STAR...

If you've seen a "fireball" (very bright shooting star), you should report it immediately! Do not bother posting it over our 'meteorobs' list, but rather go directly to the International Meteor Organization's Fireball Form: http://www.imo.net/fireball/report.html Or if you feel your sighting is of a more unusual nature, try the Dutch Meteor Society's Fireball Report Form: http://home.wxs.nl/~terkuile/general/fireball.html If you'd rather use a form you can print out and mail via postal mail, see the North American Meteor Network Fireball Report Form, available for print-out on the Web at: http://www.namnmeteors.org/reports.html There are probably many people who also saw your event: even though most fireballs appear to strike the ground "right over the next hill", they are actually generally seen at a very great distance from you (30-200 km). So expect many, many more people to see what you saw! You may contact NAMN to find out about these other reports.

DID I SEE THE FIREBALL *LAND*??

If you believe you might have seen a bright meteor actually LAND near you, PLEASE FOLLOW THIS LINK before you try to publicly report the "landing" you believe you saw!

EMAIL ADDRESSES

Subscribing and unsubscribing: majordomo@meteorobs.org In the body of the email put: "unsubscribe meteorobs" Switching to the DIGEST version: majordomo@meteorobs.org In the body of the email put: unsubscribe meteorobs subscribe meteorobs-digest end Posting your own message to the list: (To ask questions, make an announcement, discussing observing, whatever!) meteorobs@meteorobs.org Please provide a descriptive subject line, and avoid binary attachments! Searching the mailing list archive for a general keyword: majordomo@meteorobs.org In the body of the email: "retrieve meteorobs <your-keyword>" Help or questions on any of the above commands: owner-meteorobs@meteorobs.org

WEB FORMS

Subscribing and unsubscribing via the Web: http://www.meteorobs.org/subscribe.html Searching the Archive for general keywords: http://www.meteorobs.org/keysearch.html "Yahoo!" also maintains a searchable and browsable archive of 'meteorobs', which covers all posts since Januray 1997. You can even sign up to receive 'meteorobs' (indirectly) through this site!
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/meteorobs Here's another wonderful tool for browsing and searching 'meteorobs', and many other astronomical mail archives, which also covers our posts back to 1997:
http://www.astroarchive.com Posting your own observing logs via the Web: http://www.meteorobs.org/enter-log.html

METEOR STORMS (including the Leonids)

Please see the following Web page for more information on this topic: http://www.meteorobs.org/storms.html Or review Dr. Peter Jenniskens' informational site, hosted by NASA at:
http://www-space.arc.nasa.gov/~leonid

Clear skies!
Lew Gramer <dedalus@alum.mit.edu>