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(meteorobs) Meteor Activity Outlook for September 22-28, 2000
The moon has just passed its "last quarter" phase and will reach its
"new" phase on Wednesday September 27. This means that the evening sky
is now completely moon free and that the situation in the morning sky
will be improving with each passing night. All positions listed below
are exact for Saturday night/Sunday morning September 23/24. The
positions do not change greatly day to day so these positions may be
used during this entire period.
The Kappa Aquarids reached maximum activity on September 18. The
radiant position is now 22:52 (343) -03. This position is located on
the Aquarius/Pisces border some 5 degrees southeast of the "Water Jar" .
The radiant rises an hour after sunset and is best placed near 0100 when
it lies due south. The expected rates would be below 1 shower member per
hour. Although rates are low these meteors are very slow and easily
distinguished from other activity.
The Antihelion radiant is now located at 01:04 (016) +07. This position
is in central Pisces between the two 4th magnitude stars Xi and Epsilon
Piscium. Any meteor seen from Pisces or northern Cetus has a good
chance of being associated with this source. This radiant is also known
as the Southern Piscids with the I.M.O. designation "SPI". These meteors
are slow and best seen near 0200. The expected rates under dark urban
skies would be 1-2 meteors per hour.
The September Perseids are now located at 05:04 (076) +50. This
position lies in northeastern Auriga some 5 degrees northwest of the
bright star Capella. Since the radiant now lies in Auriga the display is
also known as the Delta Aurigids (DAU). We are well past the September 8
date of maximum activity so the expected activity would only be 1-2
shower members per hour. The Delta Aurigids will reach a secondary
maximum in early October so this display will be worth monitoring. This
shower as well as all of the remaining sources of activity are best seen
during the last hours before morning twilight.
The Northern Apex source is now located at 06:04 (091) +38. This
position lies in east central Auriga just 2 degrees east of the 2nd
magnitude star Theta Aurigae. Since this radiant is diffuse any meteors
from the southern half of Auriga would be a good candidate. Care must be
taken when distinguishing these meteors from those of the September
Perseids. Both of these sources produce swift meteors. As seen from the
Northern Hemisphere this source should be quite active producing 4-5
meteors per hour near dawn. From the Southern Hemisphere this source
would be much lower in the sky and only producing 1-2 meteors per hour.
The Southern Apex source lies exactly 30 degrees south of its northern
counterpart at 06:04 (091) +08. This position lies just 3 degrees east
of the bright orange star Betelgeuse in the constellation of Orion. Any
swift meteor from Orion, western Monoceros, or southwestern Gemini has a
good chance of being from this source. As seen from the Northern
Hemisphere this source should produce 3-4 meteors per hour near dawn.
Similar rates would be seen from the Southern Hemisphere.
The Sporadic rates for the Northern Hemisphere are at their annual
maximum. With slight interference from the waning crescent one would
expect perhaps 10 random meteors per hour during the last hours before
dawn.
Clear Skies!
Robert Lunsford
AMS Visual Program Coordinator
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