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Re: (meteorobs) Speed of Meteors



Dave:
    The speed of meteors encountering the earth depends on the orbit they are in and the comet they may be associated with.  Geminids are slower as they are associated with an object in the asteroid belt.  Leonids and Perseids are associated with comets that have larger (further out) orbits and thus attain higher velocities when encountering the earth.  The minimum speed for a meteoroid entering the earths atmosphere is around 11.2 km/sec which is the escape velocity.  The Leonids enter at 71 km/sec.  It is believed that meteors with higher velocities than these (hyperbolic) are inter-stellar in origin.  The latter was controversial but now seem to be accepted by recent studies and radar velocity measurements.
 
Ed Majden
----- Original Message -----
From: David Stine

To anyone, especially Esko, Robert, Rob, Peter, Joe,

 

 

Could you explain to me why different meteor showers/storms produce different speeds of meteors.  For example why are the Geminids more than twice as slow as the Leonids.  The earth travels through the different streams at the same rate of speed doesn’t it, so what causes the meteors to have different speeds.  I just never have heard an explanation for this. 

 

Thanks for your help and Geminids to all.

 

David Stine


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