Monroe Chat

Fox News Reports:
When people hear about an impending meteor shower, their first impression may be of a sky filled with shooting stars pouring down like rain.

Such meteor storms have actually occurred with the annual Leonid meteor shower of November, such as in 1833 and 1966, when meteor rates of literally tens of thousands per hour were observed.

In more recent years, most notably 1999, 2001 and 2002, lesser Leonid displays of up to a few thousand meteors per hour thrilled skywatchers. This year will be not set any records, but the Leonids — set to peak early Tuesday morning, Nov. 17 — should offer a better-than-average display.

The Leonid meteors are debris shed into space by Comet Tempel-Tuttle, which swings through the inner solar system at intervals of 33.25 years, looping around the sun then heading back into the outskirts of the solar system. With each visit the comet leaves behind a trail of dust in its wake.

Plenty of the comet's old dusty trails litter the mid-November part of Earth's orbit and the Earth glides through this debris zone every year. But predicting exactly what's out there is tricky.

On special occasions we'll pass directly through an unusually concentrated dust trail, or filament, which can spark a meteor storm resulting in thousands of meteors per hour. That indeed is what transpired in 1999, 2001 and 2002. Since Comet Tempel-Tuttle comet passed near the sun (and in doing so crossed Earth's orbit) in 1998, it was in those years immediately following its passage that the Leonids put on their best show.

But the comet has since receded out to some 1.8 billion miles from the sun, having taken most of those dense filaments of dust with it. That's why this year, during the predawn hours of Nov. 17, when the Leonids traditionally should be at their most numerous, we now expect to see no more than 10 meteors per hour, even with the promise of this year's excellent viewing conditions thanks to a New moon.

For complete story: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,575092,00.html

Too bad it will be cloudy. Gee I hate being old but, I was a small kid riding the bus before daylight in 1966 and gazing out of the window with my sleepy zomby stare, the most spectacular thing was observed by all whom were aboard at that time and till daylight ended the show we all watched and pointed at was more than one per SECOND within ones personal view was observed. We found out after we got to school what it was and that it wouldn't happen again in our lifetime in all probability. I have watched the Aug. 11 and 12th shows and quickly became bored, as nothing could compare with the 1966 show and it was by accident and chance of being on that bus on a clear dark morning. They were so bright that even after morning was breaking and until it was very light, they were still visible so almost everyone got to see it.

They were also of different intensities, I suppose due to the size so it was like watching Disney's Wonderful World of Color.

Darn clouds.