[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]
(meteorobs) Geminid Fireball over London,UK
Firstly Id like to take this opportunity to say Hi to all metrobes as this
is my first mail to the list.
I'm a relative nubie to meteor observation,so I hope you'll excuse me if
this report lacks in scientific detail.The event I observed took place on
13/12/99 ,when,after a cloudless night of observing around 15-20 meteors
per hour (not bad for the light polluted West London sky I suspect!) I had
just packed up and gone into the house.After locking the back door I paused
to admire the dawn scene outside through the plate glass window of the door
which is when I saw the fireball almost directly overhead travelling West
to East and eventually disappearing perhaps 10degrees above the horizon.I
recorded the time immediately after the event as 07.03.30 UT (+/- 2
seconds) but I'm not sure exactly how long it was visible for...maybe 3 or
4 seconds. It seemed to be at a very low altitude and had the appearance of
a dark hunk of rock with glowing deep-red/orange parts to it.I'd seen
plenty of Leonid fireballs before ,in 98 and quite a few of them in light
blue sky just before sunrise ,but nothing even remotely resembling this
event ! To top it all I *think* I heard the fizzing sound that I have heard
described in other fireball reports....
Is it possible that I heard this sound even from the other side of the door
???
All in all it was a very surreal experience,and I find myself wondering if
my senses were playing tricks on me after two long nights spent observing!
I'd be most interested to hear if anyone else in my vicinity observed this
fireball !
Clear skys ,
Leo Stachowicz
PS. Ten minutes earlier and I most probably would have captured it on my
camera!...doh !!!
To UNSUBSCRIBE from the 'meteorobs' email list, use the Web form at:
http://www.tiacdot net/users/lewkaren/meteorobs/subscribe.html
Follow-Ups:
References: