Astronomical Events!

[Crazybob]

Looks like Northern latitudes that are in the dark right now are having a pretty good show.

[Crazybob]

There is a meteor shower comming up, that usually I wouldn't even mention. The Draconids peak on Saturday. This shower usually throws 5-10 meteors an hour at it's peak. This year however, scientists think it might put on a great show. Good news is that it could be possibly 600 an hour, but the bad news is the peak favors Europe and not North America. The peak should come somewhere around 4PM Eastern time and only last a few hours. Some scientists are so sure of a good show, they are going to launch 2 planes to fly above Scandanavia with as many cameras as possible to record and track meteors to verify their origin and chemical make-up. There has also been talk of observing the dark side of the moon for impacts. Might be worth a shot, specially if they are off on their predictions by a couple of hours. The radiant for this show is the peak of a triangle formed by the last star in the handle of the big dipper, the North Star, going NorthEast and Northwest. Have fun and clear skies!

[trigggl]

There is a meteor shower comming up, that usually I wouldn't even mention. The Draconids peak on Saturday. This shower usually throws 5-10 meteors an hour at it's peak. This year however, scientists think it might put on a great show. Good news is that it could be possibly 600 an hour, but the bad news is the peak favors Europe and not North America. The peak should come somewhere around 4PM Eastern time and only last a few hours. Some scientists are so sure of a good show, they are going to launch 2 planes to fly above Scandanavia with as many cameras as possible to record and track meteors to verify their origin and chemical make-up. There has also been talk of observing the dark side of the moon for impacts. Might be worth a shot, specially if they are off on their predictions by a couple of hours. The radiant for this show is the peak of a triangle formed by the last star in the handle of the big dipper, the North Star, going NorthEast and Northwest. Have fun and clear skies!

Here's a Sky & Telescope article about it.

The airplanes they are using are Falcon 20's. Obviously I'm a Falcon fanboy since I work there.

Still, Jenniskens encourages you to look anyway during the day on Saturday. "Use binoculars looking 10° to 40° elevation away from the Sun (toward north) to spot bright Draconids from 19h to 21h UT," he suggests. "In the hours after the shower, telescopic observers might find it interesting to watch for possible lunar impacts in the sliver of darkness on the Moon near the north pole." (Make sure you identify which pole is which in your eyepiece.)

[Cappy]

sucks we wont be able to veiw it ,,, grrrrrrrrrr my son and i love this shit

[Beerdrinker]

sucks we wont be able to veiw it ,,, grrrrrrrrrr my son and i love this shit

We also really looked forward to this spectacular show...But at the time of the event (which has already accoured here in DK) the sky got overclouded....DAMN! Coulden´t see a thing!!

[trigggl]

We also really looked forward to this spectacular show...But at the time of the event (which has already accoured here in DK) the sky got overclouded....DAMN! Coulden´t see a thing!!

It's not supposed to be until 19-21 hr UTC. It's only 17:30.

[Fire$torm]

Crud, especially since MI had perfectly clear skies the last several nights. Thats what I get for overlooking this thread. My bad...

[Crazybob]

A second chance for everyone who missed the last shower. Halley's Comet makes an appearance tonight! Or at least parts of it. The annual Orionid Meteor shower will peak tonight into tommorow morning. Onlookers can expect between 20-30 meteors an hour at the peak. A crescent moon will be a little bit of an annoyance, but not that big of a deal. Of course, as with most meteor showers, it is best after midnight into the dawn as the planet plows into the meteor stream. These are fast meteors at 148,000 MPH, the leave a quick bright streak. Look towards the SouthEast as the constellation of Orion rises. The further up in the sky it gets, the more meteors you can see.

Good Luck and Clear Skies!

[trigggl]

A second chance for everyone who missed the last shower. Halley's Comet makes an appearance tonight! Or at least parts of it. The annual Orionid Meteor shower will peak tonight into tommorow morning. Onlookers can expect between 20-30 meteors an hour at the peak. A crescent moon will be a little bit of an annoyance, but not that big of a deal. Of course, as with most meteor showers, it is best after midnight into the dawn as the planet plows into the meteor stream. These are fast meteors at 148,000 MPH, the leave a quick bright streak. Look towards the SouthEast as the constellation of Orion rises. The further up in the sky it gets, the more meteors you can see.

Well, that sucks. I didn't see this post until just now.

[Crazybob]

Should have posted this earlier, but just found out myself. The Leonid meteor shower peaks tomorrow night, but there is a chance in about an hour or 2 to catch a brief outburst of meteors. If it's dark enough in your area, look to the east. Might be a show. If not, there is always tomorrow night.