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(meteorobs) "Wavering" and "Curved?" meteors
>I have seen several meteors that I would call foreshortened, the most
memorable
>of which was on the peak Perseid night, August 1993 (or maybe '92). During a
>break from observing, several of us were standing around talking. Directly
>from the direction of the Perseid radiant we saw a meteor, duration was less
than
>half a second. The path can only be describe as a very tight curl, perhaps
>10 to 15 arcminutes in diameter. The curl was about a turn and a quarter,
(450
>degrees). Several of us saw it, and collectively we decided the only
>explanation was that it was a Perseid meteor coming directly at us, with a
>small perturbation that made it appear to curl. I wish I'd been recording at
>the time, but then I'd probably not been looking in the right direction to
>notice it.
>
>Gregg Lobdell
>gml@halcyon.com
I occasionaly see a "wavering" meteor while observing. They are always
fun
to watch. They seem to constantly change directions as the meteoroid
"spins"
and then burns out. I have also seen them photographed. I used to think I
was seeing some meteors curve with an obvious arc in the sky. I now
seldom
see any real "curve" effects and believe this might an optical illusion
caused
when my eyes move quickly? I DO see some slight, occasional change in
directions, most often with slow meteors.
Question: Did anyone ever photograph a meteor with an obvious "curve" or
complete change in direction.
. . . .
Pierre Martin . . * . * . .
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home: p.martin@cyberusdot ca / . . . .
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