Leonid Meteor Storm! When, Where and How to Watch

Space.com ^ | November 6, 2001 | By Heather Sparks, Staff Writer, SPACE.com

[MeekOneGOP]

Tuesday November 06 08:37 AM EST

Leonid Meteor Storm! When, Where and How to Watch

By Heather Sparks
Staff Writer, SPACE.com

The Leonid meteor shower will flicker and flash above North America late on Saturday, Nov. 17 through early Nov. 18. All you need to see it are your eyes, a dark location, and a little weather luck. This and a few other simple tips will assure a good view of the event, which experts say should be spectacular this year.

The Leonid meteor shower is brought to us by comet Tempel-Tuttle, a ball of ice and rock that orbits the Sun every 33 years, jettisoning tiny fragments of itself. Each pass lays down a new trail of bits and pieces, or meteoroids, which burn from the friction of the Earth's atmosphere as we cross the Tempel-Tuttle trails every November.

The resulting meteors are popularly called shooting stars.

Tempel-Tuttle's path is slightly different each orbit, and the individual debris streams spread out and drift through space. So each year the number of shooting stars varies depending on which trails Earth passes through. Forecasters say 2001 should provide the most spectacular show since 1966.

Several peaks of activity are expected in various parts of the world.

For North American skywatchers, Earth will enter the heavier parts of the stream at about 11 p.m. EST on Saturday, Nov. 17. Activity will peak around 5 a.m. Sunday morning, when as many as 13 meteors per minute could be visible, likely for a stretch of time that lasts less than 1 hour. The peak corresponds to 4 a.m. CST, 3 a.m. MST and 2 a.m. PST.

Because this peak occurs near dawn on the East Coast, West Coast watchers will have a longer period following the peak to look for meteors, said Bill Cooke, a meteor forecaster at NASA (news - web sites)'s Marshall Space Flight Center.

The nights and early mornings surrounding the peak -- from Nov. 14-21 -- should also offer up a handful of meteors and possibly some meteor outbursts as Earth potentially passes through various old debris streams.

Residents around the Pacific Rim may see a more intense storm. The heaviest part of the debris stream is expected to slam into the atmosphere over the western Pacific Ocean. Top viewing in Australia, Japan, eastern China and the Philippines is expected to occur between 1:30 and 4:30 a.m., local time, on Nov. 19. Rates during these peaks could approach two shooting stars every second.

While Europeans will likely miss the strongest bursts, the Leonids should still offer a decent shower there.

What you'll see

"The Leonids have a reoccurrence of heavy activity every thirty years or so," said Dreyfuss Planetarium Astronomer Kevin Conod. Conditions are right, he said, for Earth to pass through a dense stream this year.

Conod predicts the shower will flourish with 100 to 1,000 streaks and flashes from different meteors throughout the night in North America. A similar display should occur in Central America.

But like most meteor showers, the Leonids are notoriously difficult to forecast.

"It's almost impossible to predict the exact number that will be seen at this point," Conod said, comparing the challenge to another difficult prognostication effort: "Weather forecasts don't tell you how many raindrops are going to fall."

What you'll need

No serious equipment is needed for optimal viewing. Binoculars and telescopes are of no use, because the shooting stars move across the sky too fast. Your eyes are the only instruments you'll need.

The Leonids get their name from a point in the sky, called the radiant, from which the shooting stars appear to emanate. The radiant is in the constellation Leo, which rises in the eastern sky at night, getting higher toward morning. But astronomers suggest looking almost anywhere but directly at the radiant. Shooting stars will streak all across the sky.

The shower will be best in the early morning hours, so astronomers advise getting up early rather than staying up late. It is in the early morning that the radiant is high in your local sky, so more meteors are visible all across the sky.

A cozy lawn chair or blanket to recline on will also prove helpful; without one, all that looking up could put a strain on the neck. Warm clothing and something hot to drink could prove wise, also.

Beyond that, the smartest planning involves getting away from bright lights and cities. Light pollution has rendered much of the night sky void of stars and can obscure much of the shower as well.

On the bright side, there will be no bright moonlight to drown out this year's Leonids.

Where to go

Robert Lunsford, the Visual Program Coordinator of the American Meteor Society, recommends getting as far into the country as possible. This will help everyone, from astronomers to first-time viewers, watch and even photograph the event. If you can't see many stars where you live, you won't see many meteors, either.

If you live in a dense city, or a perennially foggy place, you might consider planning ahead and booking a room at a remote bed and breakfast. High mountainous areas will also provide better viewing because there's less atmosphere up there to scatter light; more of the fainter meteors are visible from high altitudes.

To get the full effect, find a dark location outside that's clear of trees. Lunsford recommends allowing a half-hour for your eyes to adjust to the darkness. Gradually you'll be able to see more and more stars as well as meteors.

"The more stars you can see before the shower," said Lunsford, "the better level of activity you'll see as well."

Earth will encounter another dense ribbon of the debris next November. Europe and Africa are the favored locations for another predicted storm. But a full Moon will dampen the 2002 show. After that, scientists say it will likely be nearly a century before the Leonids storm again.

"It's now or never," said Robert Naeye, editor of Mercury, the magazine of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. "People should take advantage of this year's Leonid storm, because astronomers don't think we'll see another storm like this one until the year 2099. We will probably never see a better meteor shower in our lifetimes."

SPECIAL REPORT: 2001 Leonid Meteor Shower - Full Prediction, Threat to Satellites, Photography Tips & More

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[MeekOneGOP]

Sit back and enjoy the show!

[patriciaruth]

Oooooooh, thanks! We live in a rural town in California and can easily see the Milky Way over our house. My favorites were Hyakutaki (sp?) which was fabulous over our house with a long wispy tail, and the orange/brown moon with Jupiter over the backyard fence with the juniper framing it, a very primordial memory.

My husband's become an astronomy buff and has gone beyond the ooooh and aaaah state of my love for the heavens and space.

Thanks again for the heads up!

[Myrddin]

I plan to be back home in Idaho that weekend. It is darker there than San Diego. The critical question: will the weather cooperate? I just missed a fabulous aurora yesterday because of cloud cover. There is rain and snow in the forecast on Nov 15th. Just a short delay and the Leonid shower will be obscured.

[MeekOneGOP]

Thanks again for the heads up!

---

You are welcomed! My brother lives in Rancho Cordova (near Sacramento). So you've reminded me I need to point him to this article as well. Thanks. Have a good day, PR!. . .

[Cuttnhorse]

I plan to be back home in Idaho that weekend
Lucky you, I'm jealous!!
Cheers from Chile

[Nitro]

Thanks! I love this stuff!

[heleny]

I saw an excellent display of the Leonids meteor shower in 1998.
I went with a group of friends to the top of Mount Wilson in Pasadena, CA, and we stayed all night until sunrise. The night was perfect because there was no moon and because it happened to be a rainy night with a thick cloud layer below us that completely blocked out all the Pasadena/Los Angeles light pollution but left a crystal-clear sky for us on the mountain-top. (Usually the sky looks orange at night in Pasadena from all the city light pollution; one can hardly see stars dimmer than the big dipper, if at all.)
The meteors looked greenish, left long trails, and were very bright, and were very frequent. It was spectacular! I wasn't able to watch in 1999 or 2000 because of clouds or the moon, (and I wasn't on Mt. Wilson) but this year is promising.

For best viewing of a meteor shower, watch an area of the sky about 40-50 degrees away from the radiant point (Leo) after the radiant point has risen above the horizon. For the Leonids, a convenient area to watch is the area of the big dipper. You have to watch exactly that night, Nov 16-17, since the shower peak is narrow. It's nice to lie on the ground or on a lounge chair and to wear warm clothes.
Good luck watching!

[heleny]

What?! Aurora!? In Idaho or in San Diego!?
It's been cloudy in SD the last few days (and rainy on Sunday), but I didn't think aurora reached this far south. Don't tell me I missed it!
Has there still been extra sunspot activity recently?

[MeekOneGOP]

I plan to be back home in Idaho that weekend.

---

I lived in Mountain Home AFB, Idaho when I was a kid back in the mid-60's. Not many people realize that Idaho has Desert terrain too! Mountain Home is "sandstorm, scorpion" desert land. . .

What part of Idaho are you from, Myrddin?

pings for all, btw!

[kanawa]

The aurora was sooo beautiful the other night. I've never seen it so red, like a candy apple. It radiated from a point in the sky above our heads and streamers reached to the horizon in all directions. I felt like I was in God's cathederal.

My friends and I have been planning for weeks now to find as dark as possible spot to view what may be the best meteor storm of our lifetimes. Pleeesssse let it be a clear night.

Best wishes to you on your viewing. = = = = = = =*

[packrat01]

I predict that the Tallibums will also see a night display of celestially delivered fireworks.

[heleny]

Nov. 17th is around when Ramadan begins this year. They'll be up all night to eat so they can sleep during the day. And, if we take out all their electricity, they'll have a really nice view of the meteors, along with a good view of the bombs we'll still be dropping!
Or, does the Taliban now shun astronomy, thinking everything's in the Koran? Islam was good at science, math, and astronomy about 1000 years ago, before their leaders stopped looking for new knowledge.

[oceanperch]

Remember the Eunich Cult in Cali. a few year ago that committed suicide to catch an Asteroid to Heaven wellll to bad the Taliban did not follow suit. Save us money in warfare. BTW I do not advocate suicide. Nor do I advocate terrorism.

[packrat01]

I do not advocate suicide.

You don't think flying an aircraft into a tower is a form of suicide? We don't have enough planes and buildings to allow all of the muslims to "catch the comet".

[packrat01]

It was a dark, and stormy night.

All the Tallibums were sitting around the campfire.
Mulla said, "Achmed, tell us a story!"

Achmed began, "It was a dark, and stormy night.
All the Tallibums were sitting around the campfire.

Mulla said, "Achmed, tell us a story!"
Achmed began...

[oceanperch]

Your peception of what I wrote sounded creepy.
I was thinking more of them ODing themselves on downers like the Cali Cult did and then assume there prayful positions.

[Myrddin]

I live just north of Pocatello. It is on the Lower Snake River Plain. The area is high desert. I'm at 4600 ft AMSL. It is very dry. When it snows, we get the nice powdery stuff (like granulated sugar). The folks further south in the valley get wet snow or rain. The area northwest of my home is broad and flat. To the south, I have the Pocatello valley and mountains that rise up to 6,700 feet. The winds from the west are frequently steady at 20 to 30 knots. That was one feature I failed to check out before moving here. Shooting at the outdoor range with a 30 knot wind at 40 degrees F is more difficult than plinking indoors :-)

[Myrddin]

Dennis Mamana has been going up to the Lagunas around 3 AM. He shot some great aurora pics on Oct 28th and Nov 7th. You have to get away from the coastal haze and lights. The Perseids shower around August 11th is particularly good on the roads leading to Palomar mountain. Passing cars will mess up your dark adapted state, but you will have a very fine view of the meteor showers.

Check this link for recent aurora shots.

[.30Carbine]

Falling stars galore.

[MeekOneGOP]

The winds from the west are frequently steady at 20 to 30 knots. That was one feature I failed to check out before moving here. Shooting at the outdoor range with a 30 knot wind at 40 degrees F is more difficult than plinking indoors :-)

---

Well, friend, we woulda been practically neighbors, then!:

Pocatello, Idaho

( http://maps.yahoo.com/py/pmap.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=&csz=Pocatello,+ID+83201&city=Pocatello&state=ID&slt=42.884998&sln=-112.432404&zip=83201&country=us&BFKey=&BFCat=&BFClient=&mag=3&cs=7&name=&desc= )

Mountain Home AFB, Idaho

( http://maps.yahoo.com/py/pmap.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=&csz=Mountain+Home+Afb,+ID&city=Mountain+Home+Afb&state=ID&slt=43.049600&sln=-115.865500&zip=&country=us&BFKey=&BFCat=&BFClient=&mag=3&cs=9&name=&desc= )

Idaho is a very BEAUTIFUL state! We also lived in Spokane, Washington. That is shown on both maps. For those not familiar with where that is, it is shown in the top of the maps, just west of the Northern Idaho panhandle area, about 30 miles from the Idaho/Washington State lines.