[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]

(meteorobs) re 73P/SW3 meteors: 1930

Rainer Arlt wrote:

> He even describes the method of seeing faint meteors: Stare at a
> very localized area of ~5 square degrees and you may see an amazing
> number of meteors. Mmm.

Mmm indeed...

Okay, no one try the following until they've read the caveat at after:

Stare at a clear blue sky, which we've got here at the mo' for the first
time in days!  Concentrate on a small area.  Can you just detect the
"wee wiggly wormies" at the edge of perception?  Basically you have an
impression of little movements that are just discernible, and slightly
brighter than the backgound.

You're seeing the electric nerve impulses moving in your retina.

[CAVEAT: if you are easily annoyed by things don't try the above!  Like
all such things, like new car models, or subtle things in the landscape
or new anything, once you've seen and recognised one, you seem to see
nothing else but!  That is, your brain now has the pattern, and notices
these things a lot more easily.  It can be the case that for a while you
may notice these wee wiggly wormies a bit more frequently, whilst your
brain probably formerly ignored them.  There is no problem with this,
and there are no harmful side effects, and after a while you'll
habituate and stop seeing them again, but as I say, if you are easily
annoyed with anything that may interfere with how you see things, don't
try it!]

Now, sometimes you get to see these at night as well, and especially if
you are tired and your eyes are strained, you may actually see them as
very short, tight and quick little "lightning strikes" [they are
slightly ziggy-zaggy, and not too linear]!  All appear to be emanate
from the back of the eye.

NOW, I can imagine that someone can interpret a perception of many
little things appearing at once at the very limit of perception,
non-plottable but countable, and assume that they are barely detected
faint meteors, only just picked up for a short part of their path by a
concentrating eye.  Whilst, in point of fact concentrating and straining
on a small area means you're more likey to see your own retinal neurons
firing!

I'm not saying that this was _definitely_ the case in the situation
Rainer notes, but it is a reasonable possibility!

[Aurorae tonight and over the weekend maybes...]

Cheers

John

John Greaves
UK


To UNSUBSCRIBE from the 'meteorobs' email list, use the Web form at:
http://www.tiacdot net/users/lewkaren/meteorobs/subscribe.html
Follow-Ups: