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(meteorobs) Oct 2 Meteor Observations



-- [ From: Robert Lunsford * EMC.Ver #2.5.3 ] --

I managed to observe for 3:45 this morning. I was lucky to see anything
at all as the fog ceiling was broken just as I reached the turnoff for
the observatory. At the observatory a fog bank loomed in the west
seemingly ready to jump on me and spoil the sky. The sky was magnificent
! It was so dark that no skyglow was visible anywhere. The Milky Way
stretched from horizon to fog bank. The sky was ablaze with stars packed
together so tightly it appeared to be frosted. It appeared one could
reach out and touch them. Despite the brilliant sky rates were down from
yesterday. Only 37 meteors were seen this morning. Both Taurid (OAR)
radiants were active. The Delta Aurigids (DAO) were much less active
than the previous morning. No activity was seen from the possible
radiant in Cassiopeia but the radiant on the Auriga-Gemini-Lynx border
produced 2 more members.

After behaving itself the fog snuck up behind me and covered the sky
very briefly near 4:00. It quickly retreated and hugged the ground
behind me in a white mist. As moisture covered the surrounding flora and
the smell of Sage filled the air. The scene was very peaceful as the fog
even seemed to muffle the sound of traffic on the nearby highway. I had
intended to watch for a full 4 hours but the fog had other plans.
Precisely at 5:00 it rolled over me with vengeance ending the observing
session. I was disheartened as I had intended to search for comet Hale-
Bopp before heading to work.

I had a 6:00am meeting at work and quickly put everything away. While
driving back to the highway I made a last second decision to head east,
away from town, in hopes of getting a glimpse of the comet. I was not
about to let Mother Nature spoil my plans! It quickly cleared and I
turned off on the first exit. Luckily this site had a good southern
horizon and a fuzzy object near the predicted position was quickly
picked up. But something was wrong. This object seemed to be too large
and had no condensation at all. I took a few steps to the west and out
from behind a bush popped Hale Bopp. It was easily seen in 11X80
binoculars and borderline naked eye. It was still larger than expected
and had a very slight tail to the west. The first object seen turned out
to be NGC 2477, a very dense open cluster in Puppis. 

So what if I was 5 minutes late for the meeting! I may never get a
chance to see Hale-Bopp in person again. It was definitely worth it.

0815-0915 UT  0.93   6.54   1 DAO   2 OAR   7 SPO   10 TOTAL

0915-1015 UT  0.93   6.57   2 OAR   9 SPO  11 TOTAL

1015-1115 UT  0.90   6.65   1 DAO  12 SPO   13 TOTAL

1115-1200 UT  0.73   6.50   1 DAO   2 SPO   3 TOTAL

The data includes: Universal time for each block of time, actual percent
of an hour spent watching (reductions were due to plotting and fog),
average limiting magnitude for each block of time, and shower activity
seen. SPO = sporadic (random meteors).

The sky was clear while observing. There were no obstructions and no
breaks were taken. I faced due east at an altitude of 70 degrees all
morning.

Beginning Temperature/Relative Humidity:   56 F  (13 C)   72%

Ending Temperature/Relative Humidity:   53 F  (12 C)   85%

Bob Lunsford

San Diego, California   USA


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