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(meteorobs) May 6, 2002 Meteor Observations From California



After a night off I watched from Deerhorn Valley for 3 hours this 
morning to see any activity from the Eta Aquarids. The sky was just as 
good if not better as the city lights were obscured by low clouds. The 
Eta Aquarids were again a bit disappointing as only 7 were seen. At 
least there were a few bright ones tonight. The highlight of the session
was a -1 magnitude Eta Aquarid that shot overhead and high into the 
western sky leaving a nice train. The zero magnitude ETA was notable as 
it was a vivid orange. The moon was not a factor until the last hour of 
the watch as it was blocked by the hills in the east. As I was facing 
northward tonight I was surprised at the end of the watch to see low 
clouds just behind me ready to obscure my sky at any moment. Since the 
moon will be less of a factor tonight I plan to face toward the radiant 
to see if that will help me see more Eta Aquarid activity.

May 6, 2002

0847-0947 UT  0.96  6.67  0 ETA  2 ANT  0 NPX  1 SPX   4 SPO   10 TOTAL

0947-1047 UT  0.95  6.59  2 ETA  0 ANT  0 NPX  1 SPX   3 SPO    7 TOTAL

1047-1147 UT  0.95  6.23  5 ETA  0 ANT  1 NPX  0 SPX   3 SPO    5 TOTAL

TOTALS:       2.86  6.50  7 ETA  2 ANT  1 NPX  2 SPX  10 SPO   22 TOTAL


The first column gives the period watched stated in Universal Time (UT)
which is PDT + 7 hours. The second column gives the percent of that
particular hour actually spent observing the sky. Time was lost for
plotting and data entry tonight. The third column gives the average
limiting magnitude estimated during each period. The last several
columns list the activity seen during each period. I was facing north at
an altitude of 60 degrees during the entire session. No breaks were
taken. ANT = Antihelion radiant (Sagittarids), ETA = Eta Aquarids, NPX
= Northern Apex, SPX = Southern Apex, and SPO = Sporadics (random activity).

Location: Deerhorn Valley 116 45'21" W  32 41'21" N  ELE = 667m

Bortle Scale Estimate:  Class 3 (Rural Sky)

Beginning Temperature/Relative Humidity:   38 F (3 C)  76%
Ending         "         "         "       36 F (2 C)  81%

MAGNITUDES:

ETA:      -1 (1)  0 (1) +1 (0) +2 (1)  +3 (2)  +4 (2) +5 (0)  AVE: +2.14
ANT:       0 (0) +1 (0) +2 (0) +3 (1)  +4 (1)  +5 (0) +6 (0)  AVE: +3.50
NPX:       0 (0) +1 (0) +2 (0) +3 (1)  +4 (0)  +5 (0) +6 (0)  AVE: +3.00
SPX:       0 (0) +1 (1) +2 (0) +3 (1)  +4 (0)  +5 (0) +6 (0)  AVE: +2.00
SPO:       0 (0) +1 (1) +2 (2) +3 (5)  +4 (2)  +5 (0) +6 (0)  AVE: +2.80

Bob Lunsford
San Diego, CA USA


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