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(meteorobs) FW: Leonids Tuesday morning



Leonid viewing stations in Southern California made several concurrent
observations on Tuesday morning.  Unintended networking shows potential for
the future if viewing sites can coordinate their observations:

-----Original Message-----
From: Verish, Robert S 
Sent: Wednesday, November 18, 1998 2:17 PM
To: 'Matson, Robert'
Cc: Schroeder, Jeffrey R; 'Cliff Towne'; Holmgren, Erik;
'bugalde@lausd.k12dot ca.us'; 'jodie@loop.com'; 'ruizj01@pacesetter.com';
Baalke, Ronald C
Subject: RE: Leonids Tuesday morning


Hello Robert Matson,

Thanks for your message.  We appear to have observed the same fireballs.
What you observed matches what we observed, and where there is a difference
it can be attributed to your site being closer to the meteor.  

Yes!  We, too, saw the MIR, but only Jodie saw the first spacecraft.  She
wants to know how you knew it was the "Lacrosse 3".

Your question, regarding the peak in activity here in Southern California, I
can't confirm.  Checking with everybody at our site, we tend to agree with
Jeff Schroeder ( jrschroe@mail1.jpl.nasadot gov ) who stated that "The most
activity was seen from 1:00 am to 2:30 am, and from 4:15 to 5:15 am."

We are also concurrent with his observations.  Jeff states, "Five of us
observed the Leonid shower from the Ford Observatory located 1 mile East of
the JPL facility at an elevation of 7,470 ft. There was variable cloud cover
most of the night obscuring about 50% to 60% of the sky but with a
persistent clear region in the Southeast and overhead. Limiting visual
magnitudes were +5.5 to +5.7 all night with a beautiful view of the Zodiacal
light when all of the clouds cleared about one hour before dawn.
We observed from 12:30 am until sunrise on November 17."

We could see the lenticular cloud he mentions from our site.  It was
reflecting light from Victorville and must have been a problem for him.  I
was thinking of going to Table Mtn. that night, but I'm glad I didn't.  We
had exceptional viewing from Mt. Gleason.  The low-lying clouds (5500ft)
attenuated the light pollution from the LA basin and Palmdale.

I like this idea of multiple site observing.  Please let us know when your
observing.  We've been observing all Class I showers. Our next planned
observation is the Geminids. 

Until then,
Bob Verish
Mt. Gleason Site

-----Original Message-----
From: Matson, Robert [mailto:ROBERT.D.MATSON@cpmx.saic.com]
Sent: Tuesday, November 17, 1998 5:14 PM
To: 'RVerish@jftl.jpl.nasadot gov'
Subject: Leonids Tuesday morning


Hi Robert,

Saw your post in the Astro Archives on your Leonid observing
session last night.  I was a bit further to the east from you,
first in Running Springs, and later near Lake Arrowhead (racing
ahead of high-altitude clouds).  I wanted to reply specifically to
your remarks about two long trains observed late:

" ... For the next fifteen minutes 3 more slightly less impressive, long
tailed fireballs were witnessed. All of this occurred before 11:30PM(PST)!
For the rest of the night we saw many bright, fast, "short-tailed",
meteors with persistent trains > 2min. (particularly 2 twisted trains at
the same time ~5:AM PST), but NO MORE of the "slow, long tailed"
fireball variety."

I believe I saw the same two bright Leonids from my location near
Lake Arrowhead.  They were near each other (within ~20 degrees
of each other?) about midway up in the south (higher than Orion
and Canis Major).  My recollection was that they occurred about
a minute apart.  The train from the first was still easily visible when
the brighter second one appeared higher in the sky.  The first train
was visible for ~5 minutes; the second closer to 10.  The visual
magnitudes of each were at least -10.

Did you happen to see the Mir pass right-to-left above Orion and
Canis Major at 5:32 PST?  Lacrosse 3 also made a nice pass
through Gemini around 5:12.

Was sure glad I made the trip from Newport Beach.  I was getting
nervous as I drove up rt. 330 and still hadn't reached the base of the
cloud deck at 3000 feet.  But by 4000 I was in the thick of it.
Popped out at 5500.  What a sight.  Did it seem to you that the
peak activity was around 2:30 to 3:00?  By 5:00 it was noticeably
less dense than at 2:30.  --Rob
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