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(meteorobs) How clouds *helped* during the 2000 Leonids



Perhaps most haven't read the IMO analysis of the 2000 Leonids yet - it's
available at http://www.imodot net/articles/shower/leo00.html - but the
remarks about the effects of cloud interference vs. clear skies are
stunning. I wonder whether the effect of observer fatigue by staring at
a moonlit clear sky vs. the beneficial effect of cloud interference could
be tested in a planetarium: Setting the sky brightness to 'last quarter
moon' should be easy, but one would need really good simulated meteors
(with a decent randomness plus brightness distribution). Would make for
good trial runs for the 2002 Leonids, though.

Daniel

P.S.: In the German astronomy magazine Sternzeit 1/2001 there is an
interesting article about observing the 2000 Leonids from the cockpit
of a commercial airliner (where the pilot, a deep sky enthusiast, had
turned down most of the lights) - the view was very good, apparently,
despite the moonlight. Gives one more ideas for 2002 ...
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