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Re: (meteorobs) 1st Attempts at logging data, QUESTIONS
In a message dated 98-08-03 19:15:32 EDT, you write:
<< >I did not get magnitudes as I need to do some more research to find some
stars to >compare against, are my numbers seen still of much value?
Meteor magnitudes are an important thing to track. Take a look at the NAMN
Guide..dot it contains a listing of comparison stars. The data, without
magnitudes, is still valuable, so please send it to me for archiving. >>
An easy magnitude scale for the sumer is right overhead. I use it all the time
and since I don't plot meteors other than full magnitudes, the following is a
good representation for the beginner/novice.
Start w/ Vega (Lyra) is mag. 0 (zero), Deneb is +1, the center of the Cygnus
cross asterism is +2, and Albiero is +3. Dimmer than Albireo is +4 and that is
usually enough for my area with a LM average around 5.5 to 5.9 I usually don't
see any +5 meteors (unless they are right in front of me). At the other end of
the scale - Jupiter is hovering at about a -2.5 . So a meteor dimmer than
Jupiter but brighter than Vega must be a -1.
Don't worry tho as this will come more naturally the more you go out and
observe.
Kevin