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Re: (meteorobs) Leonid max?
-- [ From: Robert Lunsford * EMC.Ver #2.5.1 ] --
Lew, You Wrote:
> Planning ahead for November: What is the "official" date of the Leonid
max? The
> IMO Calendar has Nov 17 in one place (the shower description) and Nov
18 in
> another (the Working List table), while Gary's page lists it as Nov 17
and the
> AMS Circular shows it as Nov 16/17!
>
> (The Geminids date is similarly confused among these sources, by the
way...)
It all depends on the year. In 1996, the Leonids will peak on the
morning of November 17. The Geminids will peak on the morning of
December 14.
The year is approximately 365.25 days long (we get rid of the extra day
every fourth year by adding a "leap day").
The dates change due to the 1/4 day added each year. If the Leonids peak
on November 17.50 this year, they will peak at approximately 17.75 in
1997, 18.00 in 1998, and 18.25 in 1999. Then it will go back to 17.50 in
2000.
It is more complicated than this. I only wanted to present a "general"
idea of how it works.
Bob Lunsford
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