Leonids Meteor Shower Tonight!!

cmac · Post by **cmac** » Tue Nov 17, 2009 4:22 am

I didn't see anyone post this.
The Leonids Meteor Shower is peaking tonight from 1:30 EST until Sunrise.
I don't know where they are coming out of the sky from, but they are supposedly crossing over Asia, so I guess coming from the West?

Anyway, just wanted to let you guys know

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Tue Nov 17, 2009 4:46 am

Sounds cool. I'll have to go out somewhere where there aren't any street lights to hinder viewing... we probably won't be able to see it anyways, THANKS A LOT FOG!

cmac · Post by **cmac** » Tue Nov 17, 2009 5:15 am

DAMNIT! It was clear earlier!
This always happens...

Post by **jrsjr** » Tue Nov 17, 2009 5:17 am

Leonid meteors appear to radiate from a point in the constellation Leo the Lion, hence the name "Leonids." What this means is that, if you were to plot the path of every Leonid metor, they would all appear to radiate from a point in Leo. Leo will rise this morning at approximately 1 AM and traverse the sky to approximately directly overhead just before dawn.

The thing is, you don't need to find Leo to look for the meteors. Just pick a part of the sky, approximately east is a good guess, and scan that part of the sky until you see something. With a little luck, it won't take long. Over the years, I've had mixed luck with the Leonids. I've seen everything from amazing showers to complete duds. You just gotta get up before dawn and see what you see.

Hint: Take a beach chair so you are laying on your back looking up at the sky. This will save a lot of wear and tear on your neck.

EDIT: I forgot to mention an important step. Check the weather forecast so you don't get up at 4 AM, get dressed, and haul your beach chair out to your dark sky site only to look up at an overcast sky.

Post by **polianarchy** » Tue Nov 17, 2009 5:13 pm

Let's hope the sky is clear for the Geminids

Skootz Kabootz · Post by **Skootz Kabootz** » Tue Nov 17, 2009 7:21 pm

I want and watched the last one, very awesome indeed. Definitely something everyone should see. (Nice excuse for a scooter ride too... )

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Tue Nov 17, 2009 11:22 pm

yeah, it was clear enough around here until about 12:30, but I didn't see any meteors. Then the clouds came in. I always miss that sort of thing.

MarsR · Post by **MarsR** » Wed Nov 18, 2009 5:53 pm

It got pretty exciting around here!

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=8714738

iMoses · Post by **iMoses** » Wed Nov 18, 2009 6:36 pm

Too much cloud cover here in KC... which sucked... it would of been fun to watch

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Thu Nov 19, 2009 3:40 am

Woah MarsR, that's awesome!

Apiarist · Post by **Apiarist** » Sat Nov 21, 2009 7:14 pm

Can't the universe get it together and schedule these events for the weekend?

Wheelz · Post by **Wheelz** » Sat Nov 21, 2009 8:36 pm

iMoses wrote:Too much cloud cover here in KC... which sucked... it would of been fun to watch

ummmmm, sooooo anybody thought about 2012 recently?

JK, but +1 on that being really fricken cool.