View Full Version : Great Night to Watch Meteors!
I decided to watch the Leonid Meteor showers, which peak November 17, 2009, but the weather forecast here in North Carolina called for clouds to roll in then. So I made up a quick pack and headed off to Black Balsam Knob in Pisgah National Forest last night. I set up the tent on top of the bald under clear skies and a 360 degree panoramic view. The temps probably got into the upper 30's and the wind remained constant.
Wow, what a spectacular show! It's amazing what you can see under dark skies. The Milky Way was phenominal and I got to see a dozen or so "long tail" meteors. There were plenty of smaller ones too just too fast to get a good look at.
I hope you guys in other parts of the country have clear skies tonight and are able to catch some of the Leonids.
Good luck!
ShelterLeopard
11-17-2009, 12:53
Sounds awesome! I'm hoping to see some tonight,,,
We have rain showers every year that coincide with the Leonid Meteor showers :(
I will be on Springer on thursday the 19th. Do you think there will anything to see then?
Saturday night, the 14th, not long after sunset, I saw two huge, long-lasting shooting stars, and some smaller ones. Tonight should be great show...as long as you're up above the heavy cloud cover forming over this part of the country.
I will be on Springer on thursday the 19th. Do you think there will anything to see then?
Hard to say but worth a shot. Everything I read indicates the peak activity will be tonight and pre-dawn tomorrow (Nov 17-18 2009).
See this link and let us know how it went from atop Springer.
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/081204-leonids-meteor-shower-2009.html
MintakaCat
11-17-2009, 18:01
The next big meteor show will be next month called "Geminids" on the night of the 13/morning of the 14th. This meteor shower will not have as many, however, the meteors that you do see are much larger.
How do I know all this? The meteor shower for this month always falls on my daughter's birthday, and the one next month always falls on my wife's birthday. As for my birthday...sorry no meteor shower.
cloudy here. no meteors to be seen, alas.
Last night I turned off all the lights and took my sleeping bag outside, laid it on a shower curtain to keep it dry, and watched for about 2.5 hours. the sky was clear and the weather was cool (40s). I saw 11 meteors in the time I was out. I was a bit disappointed because I had heard that I should see 30-50 an hour at the peak. But hey, I sure miss my sleeping bag. It was nice.
fishallday
11-17-2009, 23:20
me and a buddy are heading up to springer thursday night too
I hate to miss this. It is total rain and fog here. I did camp a week ago when the weather was nice and we all commented on the Milky Way and the stars. Incredible.
No excitement here. Fog/high overcast rolled in the second time I went out. Hope someone saw some action.
Doooglas
11-18-2009, 07:32
NOOP. No meteors here.
Just lava sliding down the volcano ;)
woke at four am and went outside to check.
watched for maybe five minutes, stars were out, but no meteors here in Florida.
went back to bed
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark-sky_preserve
Thought this would be interesting to those who want to go stargazing.
Dances with Mice
11-18-2009, 14:02
woke at four am and went outside to check.
watched for maybe five minutes, stars were out, but no meteors here in Florida.
went back to bedKind of like an upside down snipe hunt, wasn't it?
Man oh man - we got one hell of a show in Utah:
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=8714738
This baby lit up the sky as if the sun was going to collide with the earth for about 3-4 seconds. First time (and probably last time) I'll ever see one of these things. The call it a bolide meteor... looked like a giant fireball. It lasted 10 seconds, but it seemed like an eternity.
Man oh man - we got one hell of a show in Utah:
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=8714738
This baby lit up the sky as if the sun was going to collide with the earth for about 3-4 seconds. First time (and probably last time) I'll ever see one of these things. The call it a bolide meteor... looked like a giant fireball. It lasted 10 seconds, but it seemed like an eternity.
Now, that was an amazing story!