Sunday, August 12, 2007

Perseid meteor shower coming tonight/ before dawn

Friday night/morning was great and Saturday night and morning was even better.
(see my account of Sat night./ sunday morning below).

Perseid meteor shower Sunday tonight and to morning (dawn) started at 10pm. Meteors will be from all over but Perseids stream from the constellation Perseus in the NE. Good luck tonight.

See the International Space Station (ISS) connected to the Endeavour space shuttle (see the captured image through a telescope).
http://www.spaceweather.com/

Log into Heavens above to find out where and when to glimpse the International Space Station (ISS). (also Iridium flares, comets and much more)
http://heavens-above.com/
(you must register for free)
ASKC@yahoogroups.com
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Eric Flescher's account

Observation/ Where: Louisbourg Observatory (20 minutes south of Kansas City)
Sky condition: to magnitude 6 (less hazy then last night)
Time: 9:51pm - 2:45 am
Meteors seen=24: (I was also plotting each meteor's information as I have done for years which means I missed a few here and there while doing that)
The meteors were seen in all parts of the sky
Many people from the 4 presentations afterwards noticed some of the meteors starting as soon as 9:30 pm
Sat night/ morning like Friday night/ morning had a good display or brighter meteors far better then the last 5 years of my recent observations.

Colors: 11 (white), 10 (yellow), 1 (white -blue), 1 (white -yellow)
Sporadics: 13 (1 possible Kappa Cygnid -see more below)
Perseids: 11 '
Magnitude: -2 (1), 0 (4), 1 (5) , 2 (7) , 3 (5), 4 (2) -
Lengths of meteors: 0-5 degrees (7), 6-10 (6), 11-15 (3), 16-20 (7) , 21-30 (1)
Number of meteors with train/trails: 2 (.75 second trains)
Average duration per second: 0.5 per second
Best of night :
Bright yellow fireball (not a Perseid but most likely a Kappa Cygnid) at 12:26 am , going 20 degrees and ending with a terminal mini blast explosion (mini bolide?)

? let me know