I’ll admit that I’ve often been disappointed in the meteor showers I’ll tried to catch. Being in a large metro area, the light pollution really cuts down on visibility. I’ll spend 30 minutes to actually see just one or two.
How many per hour is the Leonids suppose to offer? anything less than 50 to me is not worth my time.
You never can tell with the Leonids. In 1966 there were like 100 a minute! In 1998 it was 7 or 8 a minute, but, they were all bright green and left a trail.
1999 was 10 or 15 a minute but no green, though they did leave a trail.
Go figure!
Probably not worth the effort this year.
BUT, the Geminids are coming in December. They are quite spectacular, appear frequently, and, can be seen most of the night (no waiting until 4am for some shower members).
We use to live in the middle of Savannah, Ga. Not a big urban area, but, not that dark. It WAs dark enough that I saw plenty of Geminids. I’ve even seen brighter members while walking around the Hollywood Studios at Disney World.
It was just dark/bright enough for me to earn membership in the Urban Astronomy Club from the Astronomical League.