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(meteorobs) Saw a nice one



About 4:02 on Monday 19 April UTC (11:02 PM CDT locally), 
during satellite observing, I was fortunate enough to happen 
to look up observe a very nice meteor (fireball/bolide?).  
It was at least mag. -1 (perhaps brighter?).  Venus and the 
Moon (which had been closing on but would miss Aldebaran 
from our location) had set.  The meteor was significantly 
brighter than Capella; I forgot to check for certain but 
think that Sirius might have already been below the site's 
approx. 10-degree horizon [It's an old Nike missile site 
with embankments all around.]).  So I'm not sure it was 
bright enough to qualify as a fireball or bolide.

The meteor was strong orange-yellow, lasted about two 
seconds, and was breaking up (or shedding fragments) along 
its track.  I'm sorry that I can't provide RA and Dec, but 
its path was from about 45-50 degrees above the horizon in 
the WSW to about 15-20 degrees above the horizon in the SSW.  
(It's possible that I didn't see its beginning.)  It did not 
go out with a bright flash, but just burned out.  

The observing location was Bee Cave Research Center, 30.314N, 
97.866W, not too far (less than 10 miles/16 kilometers) WSW 
of downtown Austin, Texas.  The night was beautiful.  I was 
able to see six of the seven "little dipper" stars of Ursa 
Minor, which is better than usual at that site.  It's darker 
to the west.  I suspect that this meteor would have been 
significantly better from San Antonio, Texas.

During the evening I also saw a meteor about +6 or possibly 
brighter shoot through the middle of the field of the 
telescope eyepiece (LM about +11.5, I think).  Reflexive 
exclamation!  Unfortunately, I am still totally confused 
about which way is which when I'm looking through the scope 
-- kneeling, with head leaning somewhat to the left, and 
everything reversed (and upside down?).

Ed Cannon - ecannon@mail.utexasdot edu - Austin, Texas, USA

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