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Re: (meteorobs) Early Leonids



Adam Marsh wrote:

> Just a quick question on Denning's work.  I have heard a few references to
> it.  Who can tell me, is it in the form of a book or is it a combination of
> publications?  I wouldn't mind getting hold of copy for myself for a read.
> I'm sure there are some others who wouldn't mind some information also.  Are
> there any other recommended publications that can be of some assistance?

Denning published a huge number of articles, most of them rather
being notes in the Monthly Notices of the Roy. Astron. Soc. A
comprehensive list of his radiants can be found in Memoirs of the
R. Astr. Soc of 1899. But Denning worked into the 1920s, and a
lot of information can only be retrieved from various notes in
the above journal.

The list in the Memoirs is long; whenever you suspect a radiant
and want to look up whether Denning saw something similar -- you
WILL find something similar, because there are just so many, let's
call it convergence points. Confirming a radiant with other visual
observations needs several sources, and the analyst should be
aware of the probability of spurious radiants made by a given
number of meteors at a given position in the sky for a given
date and time (something Denning has not looked into at that
time). The best thing is always to consult orbital databases -- 
if you find three similar orbits there matching the radiant, they 
are a far better hint on a real stream than a couple of visual 
convergences. This is because orbits live in 3 dimensions, while 
coincidences in the 2D sky are much more likely.


Rainer


-- 
Rainer Arlt  --  Astrophysikalisches Institut Potsdam -- www.aipdot de
Visual Commission - International Meteor Organization -- www.imodot net
rarlt@aipdot de --  phone: +49-331-7499-533  --  fax: +49-331-7499-526

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