The Orionid meteor shower Oct.21

Just a friendly reminder to you fellow skygazers-

I've seen some amazingly long meteors from this shower in the past. Not as numerous as some other showers but with the mild temps in the East and South this month, and no moon light to interfere, should be worth it .

The Orionid meteor shower is active throughout October and the first week of November. This shower is produced by the inbound particles of the famous Halley's Comet, which last passed through the inner solar system in 1986. The Earth passes closest to the comet's orbit on October 21. At this time the Earth actually only skims the outer fringes of the debris field produced by Halley's Comet. The Orionids can still produce a very entertaining display of celestial fireworks, especially when viewed from rural locations. When seen near maximum activity, an observer from a rural location can count 15 to 25 Orionid meteors per hour.

www.amsmeteors.org...

link also has a map of where to look.

Start looking around 11 EST for the 'Earthgrazers' with the peak in the early morning hours providing bright but shorter streaks.

Thanks Jbird!

I get so caught up in day to day stuff, I forget to go out and just take some time
to look out "there" sometimes.

Lets hear it for High Velocity space dust!

Originally posted by spacedoubt

I get so caught up in day to day stuff, I forget to go out and just take some time
to look out "there" sometimes.

Lets hear it for High Velocity space dust!

I hear ya, spacedoubt, somehow I missed my fav. the Perseids, this year

So I thought I'd scrape up a little good Karma and post a reminder

Plus , Oct. 21 is a weekend, so that helps.

Get yer favorite lawnchair/lounger oiled up, to save those neck muscles.

hope the clouds stay away.

good luck

Ding Ding!

Just a reminder bump of this thread.

if it's clear, do yourself a favor, follow Jbirds advice, and get some fresh air this weekend.
I was out for a while Thursday night, and though there weren't many, I sighted one extrememly bright red one..It was a nice long trail, and it even re-brightened twice, before finally fizzling out..

Originally posted by spacedoubt
Ding Ding!

Just a reminder ....

Ha, ha, was gonna bump this myself , but you beat me to it.

Saw a lot of views, so I'm guessing there are some sky watchers out there.

It'd be interesting to get some reviews, after the weekend, from different parts of
the country(ies).... don't you think?

I'll be out tonite, but in a less than desirable location.
Tomorrow will be the nite for me , as I'll be in a much darker area.

And your sighting is encouraging, spacedoubt
good luck...

Wonderfull cloud cover over here at the moment - and i was looking forwards to some spotting - shame because the last few nights have been so clear.

yea, Silk, the bane of skywatching, too bad.

Tomorrow is the peak, if the clouds clear.

And don't forget ...

Leonids (Nov 18),
Geminids (Dec 10-16),
Ursids (Dec 22)

...althought these can be some chilly events , depending where you're located.

Last bump.

Tonite is the peak.

Saw 3 bright, wide, white streaks last nite in about 40 minutes of watching. One of them was a long one stretching about 1/3 of the visible sky.

Many small flashes out of the corner of my eye ,some of which, could've been bats reflecting the car lot lights, tho.

Clear sailing tonite , here, so I'll be watchin' for some of those colored fireballs tonite (ala spacedoubt).

Good luck... Keep lookin' up.

Just found this out,thanks to your thread,just in time too.
Thanks for the heads up.

Thank you thank you for the bump!!

I read about this earlier in the month, and wanted to remember it, but ........ I am inflicted with "OAS" ......... Old Age Syndrome. lol

Now, if you'll excuse me, the back yard beckons me

Misfit

[edit on 21/10/06 by Misfit]

no problems with cloud cover but the Diawali celebrations are making the sky look like a bad night during "Shock and Awe". I appreciate the respect to celebrate ones religions - but jeez its 0100 here and i can't see my beloved stars

I'll be out with the camera tonight.

I was out last night too, but most were too dim to make an image..
Saw about 20 dim ones.

I have a fantastic image of a geminid from 2 years ago..
Maybe I'll get lucky again tonight.

Good luck everyone..

Well I had a little bit of fun (an extreme rarity for those that know of me) -

Got the telescope out for kicks, I live outskirts metro and right beside the friggen airport, but I had fun. Was looking at the brightest star in my view, and a meteor (is that correct term, maybe it's "meteor fragment") shot across the view, it was quite slow actually, a LOT slower than I had expected - was almost able to quickly track it for just a second.

The best part of it all tho ..................... drumroll .............. the 9yr old grand-daughter just got turned on to astronomy !! WHOOHOOO !!!!! Also showed her the PC app (Starry Nights Pro) and she waaaaay dug it - such a good thing to be inspired so young.

K then, hope all see lots !!!

Oh, one more thing ................

Originally posted by spacedoubt

Saw about 20 dim ones.

Envy now strikes me !!!!

Misfit

Thats great luck Misift, actually able to track it.
Funny that you say it was slow, the one I saw last night was also slow.
Pretty cool about your grand daughter..Meteors are what got me interested too!


I'm getting skunked so far tonight.
There is still time, so I'll go out again.

In the meantime, something I am proud of..
That Geminid pic from 2 years ago. I've posted it before, but I thought you all might enjoy it again. It slashes right through Orion..

Originally posted by spacedoubt

In the meantime, something I am proud of..That Geminid pic from 2 years ago.

Is that to say you took that pic?

Misfit

Yessir!

I sure did..
I took about 200 with nothing but stars, then that one!

I like to use a constellation as a backdrop, even if the radiant is not super close.

It just makes a for better shot!

[edit on 22-10-2006 by spacedoubt]

what kind of camera was that spacedoubt ? very clear night shot.... cool pic

Originally posted by spacedoubt

Yessir! I sure did..

spacedoubt, that is just way too cool

I can't wait to get a digital adapter for mine. I have an AV adapter, but no video input on the PC

If you grab any more shots like that one ............ I DEFinately want to see !!!

Our family and two others (one is my best bud, also with a rig) are going far FAR out to ones ranch next week for a star party !! It will be my first real outing with the new tele --- WHOOHOOO !!!!!! lolol

Misfit

Originally posted by Misfit
The best part of it all tho ..................... drumroll .............. the 9yr old grand-daughter just got turned on to astronomy !! WHOOHOOO !!!!!
Misfit

Wow! great story Misfit!
I can relate.

Love to hear the OOOO's and AHHH's when I show the young'ns (and the adults, too) the Rings of Saturn or the craters on the moon for the first time, with my Joe amateur 4" spotting scope.

It's always heartening to hear one might've had a tiny part in broadening the interests/world of the next generation(s).

And Kudos, to you for furthering the adventure. (Sounds like a little good Karma is in order for your upcoming Star party.)

I felt a little remiss.for not mentioning the other relatively easy to spot features of the same area of sky,
(the Pleiades, Orion nebula, and Sirius, the brightest star in the northern sky)
but I suspect, after reading the details of your account, you have that well in hand.

thanks for the review.

Originally posted by spacedoubt

In the meantime, something I am proud of..
That Geminid pic from 2 years ago. I've posted it before, but I thought you all might enjoy it again. It slashes right through Orion..

spacedoubt- you have every right to be proud of of that shot!! And a great backdrop to boot!

Nice job, my friend! I'm so jerous...

I'll bet It became your favorite wallpaper for a while, eh?!

My night:

1 bright white, wide, slow mover

about a dozen thinner, fast streakers( Don't cha love it when you've seen too many to keep an accurate count)

and one unusual one (in my experience)-
short, wobbly, yellowish, low on the eastern horizon,

and actually moving Toward the radiant.

All in all, not a bad night.