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(meteorobs) (admin fwd) Chicago, IL Observations 09:15-11:30 UTC (3:15-5:30 CST)


From: "varlet" <varlet@earthlinkdot net>


Observing meteors from inside the city of Chicago is usually "an =
exercise in futility", and Sunday morning promised to be another =
disappointment, as we had fog throughout the city and 40-60% thin cloud =
cover as the predicted peak time of 10:00 UTC (4AM CST) approached. =
However, the fog wasn't very thick, and a quick check of the Weather =
Channel Infrared satellite image showed breaks in the rather thin =
cloudcover, so I said "what the hell" and rode my bicycle down to North =
Ave. beach (on Lake Michigan, just a half-mile north of the "Magnificent =
Mile" and the Hancock Tower)  where I had witnessed the spectacular =
auroral display of Nov. 5-6 2001.
  There were quite a few people out observing at this site, maybe 20 =
people with more arriving later.
  The fog was thin, I could make out around 10 of the major stars that =
make up Leo... further to the north, the Big Dipper's 7 brightest stars =
were visible, but not much else.
  Right away I saw the Leonids, mostly the brightest ones blazing away, =
some were blue-green in color. They seemed to cluster in groups of two =
or three at a time.  As the thinnish cloud cover passed overhead, you =
could still see the brightest meteors shining through.
  Meteors were visible throughout the sky, from right around Leo (where =
I saw most of them) all the way down to the horizon, and all along the =
horizon from North to South.
  I have never been able to see more than 4-10 meteors during any shower =
since I've been observing from Chicago (since 1994) but last night I was =
able to see a total of 89 meteors in 2 hours and 15 minutes!!!  Many =
people were disappointed in the display, but for me, seeing 89 meteors =
from this highly light-polluted site is absolutely phenomenal. I am =
certain that if we had clear skies, it would have been possible to see =
twice as many, and that is obviously a serious meteor storm for these =
parts!   =20
  Summary: I saw 85 meteors from 3:15AM CST to 5:00AM CST, when the =
cloud cover became so dense that no stars were visible at all, but I =
still saw 4 more near to the eastern horizon.  The peak was supposed to =
begin around 4AM CST, and it appeared to me that the prediction was VERY =
accurate.
  All things considered, I am very happy to report I saw the most =
meteors I've ever seen in my life despite rather poor seeing conditions; =
the moral of the story being that no matter where you live, it is =
possible to find a relatively dark site where you can observe celestial =
phenomena. In the last two weeks I have observed a spectacular auroral =
display and an equally spectacular meteor shower from a location where =
most people would say it is "impossible" to observe anything.  I say, if =
you don't look, you won't see anything, of course, but if you just GET =
OUT THERE AND OBSERVE   you'll be amazed at what you'll see!

Mark from Chicago, IL


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