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(meteorobs) Re: July 10/11 meteors dull
Finally did get out to observe July 10/11 for nearly 3 hours : 232-530 EDT
(632 - 930 UT). Twilight was just beginning as I completed the last hour.
Still had to put up with nearly stationary convective debris from the
previous afternoon's thunderstorms. It would dissipate a little, then
reform at different altitudes, just refusing to move away. I had 10% clouds
the first hour, then 30% the other two. Had some lightning from a night
thundershower maybe 15 miles further south. It's not easy to get a
lightning-free summer night in these parts. Just cool enough to be
semi-comfortable, perhaps 75oF. Humidity probably 90%. Mosquitoes weren't
too bad; a cardboard fan was enough for now. I had some skin-so-soft ready,
just in case. Worked up a good sweat around 1 AM just loading the car to
go -- took along empty containers to pick up mulch from the landfill on the
way back in. This has become a ritual, gets two things done in one trip.
Had to take a cold shower before going out to cool off and be clean.
Mosquitoes tend to go for fragrances as well as CO2 exhalation.
On meteors, I recorded 27 with sky LM6.8. There were 1 Perseid, 2 Alpha
Capricornids, 1 South Delta Aquarid, and 23 sporadics. 14 are plotted ;
deduct 12 seconds for each plot. 3 meteors tried to form a radiant at 355,
+10 ; got to have 3 more next night to accept it. I was pleased to see a
couple of Alpha Caps ; these haven't done well for a good many years now.
Nothing from Phoenix -- the radiant is only 15o up at best.
There was a very slow-moving satellite overhead going S to N. It would
brighten to about 3.5m for a few seconds, then fade out for more than 5
minutes. Seemed to cover only 5 degrees in 15 minutes ! Very brief
flashes can be mistaken for stationary meteors -- great care must be taken
these days to decide what you are looking at. Any stationary flash needs to
be watched for repeats before recording it, unless it leaves a train.
Civilization is encroaching on my observing site. I noticed two cars at the
nearest house, only 3 blocks away. Will use a second entrance to the area
just to avoid all the houses. So far none of them have put up outdoor lights.
Norman W. McLeod III
Visual Program Coordinator
American Meteor Society
Fort Myers, Florida
nmcleod@peganet.com