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Re: (meteorobs) meteor colors
At 08:25 PM 10/4/96 -0400, you wrote:
>In a message dated 96-10-04 19:15:07 EDT, you write:
>
><< Ron asked:
> >Can anybody out there tell me what significance the colors have. Does it
> >mean that they are a particular composition, and if so, does it tell us
> >anything about their source?
> >
> >Any information on these matters would be appreciated.
Hi all
Thank you for your replies to my enqiry about meteor (perceived) colors, all
very interesting.
I did see another explanation on a local TV news broadcast last night when
they interviewed Ed Krupp, who is the Director of the Griffith Observatory,
here in Los Angeles. He speculated that the color seen is a result of the
height of the meteor above the ground. He said that as it enters the upper
atmosphere it glows green then turns yellow as it gets lower. He didn't
mention red or orange.
This may tie in with Bob's Northern Lights analogy, except for one thing.
Bob also mentions green being caused by the excitation of the oxygen
molecules in the atmosphere. The problem is that oxygen is rareified in the
upper atmosphere, so I would expect it to glow green in the lower
atmosphere, if that were the case.
Does anybody else have an opinion on that?
Ron.