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Re: (meteorobs) Early Evening Observing



Some remarks to early evening observing: If one says evening observations are as
important as morning observations, he actually means you should observe at any
time you face reasonable conditions. Every time of the day is interesting, every
time of the year is interesting, Moon?, well you may miss an outburst if not
observing...

We are amateurs, fun and relaxation is a major reason for meteor observing. Most
observers will not be able to watch all night. If you consider all the other
restrictions: When do I have to get up next morning, am I tired now, and should
I get some sleep before observing, may fog prevent me from observing in the
morning, what is the phase of moon, at what time are radiants at suitable
heights above the horizon... the question about the scientific use of evening
observations will not be relevant anymore. Some restrictions like a gibbous
waning moon will automatically cause you observing in the evening.

People who must observe at low-limiting magnitude sites, should use the morning
hours preferably, since their meteor numbers in the evening will be very small,
and the statistical significance will be low. This does not mean those
observations are useless. I just want you to get an idea of suitable observing
times before running out and collecting hours. And then, on August 10, you say
"I reached my 100-hour limit...go to bed now for the rest of the year"...

So, for the Aurigids on August 31/September 1, it's certainly the morning hours
which are interesting for observing. And if you send an Aurigid report for 8-10
pm, you will be punished by observing all February from 8-10 pm... ;-)

IMO welcomes any contribution from careful amateurs, who write down what they
see (sounds silly, but isn't that easy to understand for some guys...), and send
their reports. I try to utilize as many observations as possible, and not all of
them are as well prepared as the NAMN reports.

Rainer

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Rainer Arlt -- Visual Commission Director
International Meteor Organization
visual@imodot net
Home page of IMO: http://www.imodot net
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