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(meteorobs) Observations Feb 26/27 from Hawaii + Point meteor!
Hello folks,
Saturday night was set aside for a combination of Comet/Nova/Meteor
observing. I drove up to the 7000' level of Haleakala. It was unusually
warm for the altitude, in the 50's, only I was bothered by a very strong
wind, near 40mph.
I reserved the meteor 1.67hr Teff for the time just before moonrise.
Overall, the DLE was "big" shower player last night, with 3.7 observed.
They were all around mag 2 and 3, most had nice slow teardrop shape,
like little comet tails. Also 2.3 VIR and 10 SPO. The fractional meteor
is arrived at due to a slow mag 3 that followed a trajectory exactly
along the line from DLE to VIR. Only the path length was a bit close to
the VIR, so I must assign it 70% DLE, 30% VIR because I can't absolutely
rule out VIR.
Also, during the second period, I saw almost certainly a mag 1 point
meteor! This is the first one for me. I could not identify any other
source of this light flash, that lasted about 1 sec in the SSE. There
was no sign of aircraft; and low satellites, such as Iridium could not
be seen there at 0100 near the middle of the night. It could have come
from a high orbit satellite or geosynchronous one. However, I dont know
of a comprehensive database or source for all possible orbiting objects
to research this fully. Could anyone help?
Mike.
P.S. BTW, Comet S4 LINEAR continues to lag brightening at mag 13.5,
which is not promising for a bright apparition this summer. Bummer.
REPORT FOLLOWS:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
OBS: Mike Linnolt (LINMI)
DATE: Feb. 27, 2000
TIME: 0930 - 1122 UT (11:30pm - 1:22am HST Feb 26/27)
LOC: Haleakala NP, Maui, HI (20° 46' N, 156° 15m W)
ELEV: 2100m
Conditions: Clear. Temp 55F. RH 30%. Winds strong.
METHOD: Paper
Observing Periods Summary:
==========================
# Period(UT) FOV Teff F LM DLE TCE VIR SPO
---------- --- ---- - --- --- --- --- ---
1 0930-1032 10h +10 1.00 1.00 6.4 3 0 1 5
2 1040-1122 11h +10 0.67 1.00 6.4 0.7 0 1.3 5
Periods Detail:
===============
Period #1:
----------
Mag->_-3___-2___-1____0___+1___+2___+3___+4___+5___+6
-------+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+
DLE:............................2....1............... = 3
TCE:................................................. = 0
VIR:......................................1.......... = 1
SPO:.......................1..............1....2....1 = 5
DEAD TIME: 2 min
Period #2:
----------
Mag->_-3___-2___-1____0___+1___+2___+3___+4___+5___+6
-------+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+
DLE:................................0.7.............. = 0.7
TCE:................................................. = 0
VIR:................................0.3...1.......... = 1.3
SPO:.......................1.........2.........2..... = 5
DEAD TIME: 2 min
Note: A moderately slow mag 3 meteor had a trajectory that passed
perfectly along a line between the DLE and VIR radiant. The path start
at 12:45 -22 and end at 13:45 -35. By the path length criteria it is
a little bit close to VIR radiant, but I cannot positively rule it
out as VIR, hence I must log it as 70% likely DLE, 30% VIR.
Also, the mag 1 SPO, was a point meteor. It appeared at 0100 local
time near 11:00 -35. I ruled out possibility of aircraft light or
satellite, especially Iridium, because it was too late at night for
any low earth orbit object to shine. It could possibly been a light
from a high orbit or geosynchronous object, though.
END OF REPORT.
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