Hello,
My name is Carl Hergenrother and I am a professional astronomer at the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Lab who also enjoys observing the heavens for the fun of it.
The purpose of this blog is to present news and observations related to the study of comets, asteroids and meteors. The focus will be on objects that are interesting or that can be observed by people from their own backyards.
I will be sharing some observations I’ve made, either from my backyard or at the large professional scopes. If you have observations or images of comets, asteroids and meteors, you are welcome to send them in.
You can contact me at <transientsky1@yahoo.com>.
Happy Reading,
Carl
The Transient Sky - Comets, Asteroids, Meteors 
Great pictures! I can hardly believe they came from our back yard :).
Great Photos and website. I have book marked it Carl. Your Dad would have loved to see this.
Carl,
Great site! I’ll have to add my video data…
I also would like to learn how to convert my bmp stills into gif’s. The only problem it that I have an ugly black smear on my intensifier. I can get rid of it on still shots but not gif’s.
I’m looking forward to seeing more of your video postings!
Bob Lunsford
I’m an airbus A320 pilot and on the 26th sept 10.30pm coming into heathrow I saw what What must have been large space debris re entering the atmosphere. Amazing sparks as it went on a very shallow desent from north west to south east. Has anyone got any idea how you could find out what it was?
At approximately 20:30 on 09/27/2008 my wife, daughter and I saw what appeared to be a fuzzy blob moving quickly from the direction of Polaris southward. When viewed through binoculars, the object was round and had what seemed to be crater-like surface features. It was illuminated like a new crescent moon. The movement from north to south and-out-of-sight took around 5 minutes. It did not appear to be burning so it must not have been in the atmosphere. It looked like it was very big.
This observation took place in Monrovia, California and the sky was clear. We would really like to know what we saw because it was really unusual.
Thank you.
jim go to my fb page and read up on what i saw in feb of 2008! i have allsky footage also, go to graham asteroid hunter steadman ive been trying to prove this 4 years now with no reply from anyone govermental body i know theyre hiding an astroid that interacts with us in feb i know it they took the video from all sky down after i told them ,they then replaced it with the most important mins missing i have the original file from that night go request me as a friend
We were of a party of four holidaying in the hills and mountains of Les Alazards, Beaumont-du-Ventoux, Malaucene, Provence, France on 25th September 2008 where at 23:55 local time, we witnessed an asteriod travelling North/West to South/East. It started as a ball of fire with a very long tail and then, over a matter of seconds, split into several small ones as it burned in the atmosphere. it finally went over our heads, over the mountains and out of view.It was the most spectacular event we have seen!
We heard nothing from the media the next day and cannot believe no one else saw this as it was significant in the sky! We were wondering if this is the one seen by the others around that time/day?
go to my fb page and read up on what i saw in feb of 2008! i have allsky footage also, go to graham asteroid hunter steadman ive been trying to prove this 4 years now with no reply from anyone govermental body i know theyre hiding an astroid that interacts with us in feb i know it they took the video from all sky down after i told them ,they then replaced it with the most important mins missing i have the original file from that night go request me as a friend
Comet Observations
I was out at the dark site of the San Diego Astronomical Association Thursday night/Friday morning September 25/26 . I had a large list of comets to try to track down but only managed to see two of them. Comet d’Arrest was a large, faint, diffuse patch as seen through my 9.25in SCT. Later in the morning an even more difficult Comet Borrelly was spotted as a small glow in the constellation of Leo. My observing partner could not detect either object but managed to see the Horse Head Nebula in Orion, an object I rated much more difficult to see.
Bob Lunsford
San Diego, CA
To Jim Stears:
Hi Jim,
What you described was probably not a meteor since meteors move very fast (faster than planes) and only last a few seconds. Based on similar things I have seen, it may have been a balloon. If the balloon is high enough, it will still be in sunlight when the it is dark on the ground. I once saw a football sized weather ballon over Tucson. It was obvious to the eye that it was large and round. At its brightest it was by far the brightest thing in the sky. That’s my guess for what you saw.
Thanks for the report!
– Carl
I am visiting the Stellafane Oberservatory in Springfield, Vermont, this weekend, and I am writing from the famous pink clubhouse. After a fun time last night videoing the Moon with the Porter Turret Telescope, I just discovered your neat site. Consequently I learned about the recovery of Barnard’s old comet. Thank you!
Just two days ago, I was telling my students about Barnard, his many famous discoveries, and how he had paid for his cottage with the Warner prizes ($200/comet). We’ll have to make a point of getting a CCD image of this comet back at Clay Center Observatory.
Thank you for starting this neat site — I’ll be a regular visitor! And I’ll be showing it and the Barnard news to my students next week.
–J. W. Briggs,
(–Proud owner of Barnard’s “Selected Areas of the Milky Way” atlas, which I was just showing to students on Friday.)
10-12-08
Dear Carl,
if you know what type of magnitude comet
c/2008 T2 ( cardinal) will be when it shows up next year please
let me know.
Hi there,
Love the site.
I was wondering if you could tell me if the objects in the picture from SOHO below are comets?
This picture is from SOHO yesterday in far ultraviolet. If the sun is a clock face, the objects are just above the surface of the sun between 9 and 12 O’Clock in groups and also various other places round the sun. These objects seem to be in our line of sight with the sun and are in each picture at this wavelength going back a couple of months. Some of these objects seem to move in an ever decreasing spiral shape as they come out of the sun’s glare. More seem to be coming from behind the sun as well, again in long spiral chains.
I thought it might be an artifact of the camera but some of the light from the sun is interacting with the objects and they do seem to move, particularly the groups on the right hand side of the Sun’s face (between 1 and 3pm). There seem to be more of these objects coming over the Sun’s north pole.
http://www.spaceweather.com/images2008/11oct08/coronalhole_hinode_blank.jpg?PHPSESSID=2ok1hmof3le3gptrpbf81kbqo2
Because of the method by which sun is seen from the other SOHO instruments, this part of the sun is not shown in any other shot with this kind of contrast.
Many, many thanks for any help
Chris Curtis
Auckland, NZ
Hi John,
I’m glad you’re enjoying the site!
When you get an image of the newly re-found Barnard comet, please send it my way. I’d like to post it on the site.
Barnard is definitely one of my favorite astronomers. He showed a perfect blend of observing ability and scientific understanding. Plus he also did I great job of standing up to and showing up the powers-that-be when he worked at Lick Obs.
– Carl
Hi Harry,
Right now, it looks like Comet Cardinal will get up to 8th magnitude in May/June of next year. It will be an evening object at the time. Note that there are large uncertainties in predicting comet brightnesses this far in advance. The comet could end up anywhere between 7th and 9th magnitude.
The Minor Planet Center’s ephemerides and brightness estimates can be found at:
http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/iau/Ephemerides/Comets/2008T2.html
Seiichi Yoshida’s page on C/Cardinal can be found at:
http://www.aerith.net/comet/catalog/2008T2/2008T2.html
Seiichi’s page also allows you to follow the comet’s brightness as the observations come in.
– Carl
Hi Chris,
The objects you are seeing in the close up UV images are just image artifacts. I’m not sure if these are caused by the camera itself or the compression algorithm that is used. Regardless, they are not real.
All of the SOHO images have been seen in the C2 and C3 coronagraph images which can image much further from the Sun (many solar radii).
There are a couple of great websites which focus on the SOHO comets and how to spot them.
http://uap-www.nrl.navy.mil/sungrazer/
http://home.earthlink.net/~tonyhoffman/SOHOhunt.htm
http://www.cometary.net/soho.htm
Thanks for your question and I hope the above resources help.
– Carl
Response to answer re: artifact question by Chris Curtis above:
Answer by Hergenrother
“The objects you are seeing in the close up UV images are just image artifacts. I’m not sure if these are caused by the camera itself or the compression algorithm that is used. Regardless, they are not real.”
Hi there, I also love the site. This question interested me because of my work.
I’m an old school image analyst (from the days of ray tracing, if anyone remembers) and I’ve done a really simple analysis of those particular images discussed across a large enough sample to be COMPLETELY sure that a LARGE number of the objects that you guys have proposed to be artifacts are CANNOT be according to the pixel data. By the time you compare a fourth image with any other three (and there are many more than four images), the number of standard deviations required to account for the interaction of light with some of these objects and the almost imperceptible movement in one of at least THREE rotating directions implies that if these are artifacts they would have to be ARTIFICIALLY put there to account for perfect fit into the data. The image processing stats simply stated say either they have been put there to look like artifacts (what would be there point since this would take many many professional full time renderers to get right?) or they are part of the observation between the sun and the source of the image taking CCD (is that in orbit?)
I don’t know if this helps. I’m not much of an astronomer, but for what it is worth, cameras and image processing algorithms leave some traces and artifacts but nothing like this or even on this scale in any set of images I have ever experience in my career. I’m not into conspiracies at all, usually something like this happens when you ask an image analyst what something is and they cant be bothered to check and just say “its an artifact”. Now I’ve seen that MANY times over the years. It might not hurt to ask for a second opinion of another image analyst.
Hi Sol,
Thanks for the analysis. After reading your write-up, I took another look at the images. I’ll have to admit that I didn’t spend too much time trying to figure out the exact cause for the spots other than that they are probably image or compression artifacts.
The images were taken by the X-Ray Telescope on the Hinode spacecraft which is a Japanese/American spacecraft dedicated to solar research. After digging around on the Hinode webpage, I came across the following explanation for the spots:
“XRT Analysis After CCD Bake-out in July
The XRT CCD has experienced some degradation due to contamination that appeared after a short CCD bake-out in July. The contamination is manifest by small (~5 pixel diameter) spots on the detector. The spots cover somewhat less than 4% of the CCD area.They are seen in G-band images and in the thinner x-ray filters (Al_mesh, Al_poly, Ti_poly, C_poly and Be_thin, with decreasing effect in the order listed). The origin of the contamination is not understood at this time.”
This can be found on the following page:
http://solarb.msfc.nasa.gov/for_scientists/data_policy.html
So what we are seeing are actual spots on the surface of the camera detector. There may be contamination on the optics as well but I suspect that those would be out of focus.
For those readers who are not aware, contamination of spacecraft parts is a common problem. In the vacuum of space, most material will experience outgassing (release of gas) especially if heated. This gas will then settle on everything especially things that are very cold. Many camera detectors are chilled to very cold temperatures to increase camera performance. I’m not sure if the Hinode camera is chilled though.
The “bake-out” mentioned on the Hinode page is a procedure where the detector is warmed up to a sufficient temperature so all of the contaminants evaporate. The hope is that the contaminants will then move away from the detector and either escape into space or re-form on some less important part of the spacecraft. “Bake-out” procedures are part of the routine maintenance of both spacecraft and ground-based telescope camera systems. For whatever reason, the Hinode “bake-out” seem to have made things worse.
Thanks again Sol for your insight and Chris for starting the discussion,
– Carl
Thanks Carl! Awesome Sol.
Hope you don’t mind if I ask one more question Carl as there still something I can’t account for and you seem to really know your stuff. I overlaid the pictures from each shot with SOHO and flicked through them looking at some of the spots that didn’t look too much like the main artifacts of the Hinode bakeout and some of this objects are in the SOHO pictures too as well as the Hinode camera view. I found at least five different objects close to the sun that appear to be between us and the sun. Some of these seem to be lit on one side by the Sun in the Hinode shots and are also visible in the today’s SOHO pics…
Hi Chris,
No problem. Glad to help.
Can you post a few images showing examples of the SOHO/Hinode objects? I’ll give them a look and tell you what I think.
– Carl
My 4 yr-old son and I were traveling northbound last evening through Corte Madera, California around 5:40pm on Nov 18 and saw a blaze across the evening sky. It was a ball of light with a bright tail heading westward in the Northwest sky. We came online to find out exactly what it was and until we landed on your site it would seem we were the only ones to notice it, which is a shame, because it was spectacular! Sounds like it was Leonids… sorry we don’t have more technical details.
Hi Becket and Louis,
Definitely sound like a meteor. The Leonids can only be seen after midnight so it is more likely that you saw a Taurid. The Taurids are not as strong as the Leonids but they can be seen at all hours of the night and are a good producer of bright meteors in Oct and Nov.
Thanks for writing and I hope you enjoyed the meteor,
– Carl
There are 20 fireball reports on the event seen by Becket and Louis on the AMS fireball page. Summaries of these reports may be viewed at:
http://www.amsmeteors.org/fireball/fireball_log2008.html
Refer to event #563. You will notice this event was seen from northern California, southern Oregon, and northeastern Nevada.
Bob Lunsford
Hi Carl,
On November 15, 2008, a friend and I were driving north about 30 minutes south of San Francisco. We saw a very large ball of fire decending through the atmosphere, which I’m assuming was a meteorite. I havn’t seen anything like it since I was a little kid in NJ. Did you see it? Or have you heard reports of it? It was quite large and from my view point, clearly within the earth’s atmosphere. Just curious if others saw it too.
Hi Douglas,
Unfortunately, Tucson is too far away from SF for my camera to have seen your fireball.
According to the American Meteor Socirey Fireball Sighting Page at http://www.amsmeteors.org/fireball/fireball_log2008.html, there was a sighting of a fireball around 8:30 PST from Burlingame, CA on Nov 15. The report suggests it was almost as bright as a Half Moon. Was this the one you saw?
BTW, I was a little kid in NJ too. Grew up in Oakland in Bergen County.
– Carl
Hi Carl,
Well, I never got back to you about this. Two years later, I would have to say it was the same fireball, it was around that same time. Sorry it took so long, I forgot all about my question to you. Better late than never : ) I’m from up north in Vernon, NJ, I’ll never forget that big ball of fire I saw as a kid, my family and neighbors were there too, and everyone witnessed it. Pretty cool stuff. Well, thanks for getting back to me!
Doug
Hi there,
I saw a meteorite/fireball on my drive into Winnipeg, Manitoba on Thursday, November 27th, 2008. It was just as substantial as the footage that I have seen of the meteor that landed in Saskatchewan. It happened so quickly, that I wonder if anyone else possibly saw what I did. There was another person in my vehicle, and we both undoubtedly saw the same thing. I am just wondering if anyone has some form of documentation of that meteor? Thank you for your time.
I live in Minneapolis, MN. I saw a white streak last night directly east at about 9:45 pm (Dec 30) that came down nearly vertical. It burned out before the horizon.
My name is Lee Amoroso and sunday night 6:45Pm (I live in NJ) I was driving and saw what I thought could be a comet. It was definitely no shooting star! It moved slower than a shooting star and had a fiery tail shooting out behind it-almost like fireworks. Is it possible that it was a comet?
Thanks!
Hi Lee,
Based on your description you saw a very bright meteor (also called a ‘fireball’). Unlike the usual run-of-the-mill meteor or “shooting star” which move very fast and last for a fraction of a second, fireballs can move slower and last for a few seconds. It is not uncommon for them to look just like fireworks with small pieces breaking off and falling behind the main piece. They can also appear in any color.
It definitely wasn’t a comet. There are no comets known to be that bright at the moment. Plus comets move very slowly. So slow, in fact, that you would not notice any movement over the course of a night.
If you would like to make an official report of your fireball, you can enter the information at
http://www.amsmeteors.org/fireball/report.html
The form is very basic and you don’t need much knowledge of the sky to fill it out.
Thanks for the report,
– Carl
Hi Lee,
Quite a few reports of the fireball you saw were reported to the American Meteor Society. The fireball was seen across NJ, NY, CT, PA, MD and MA. Many people said it was yellow or even reddish rather than the usual blue/green.
You can find the reports at
http://www.amsmeteors.org/fireball/fireball_log2009.html
– Carl
Video Meteor Observations on January 27th from San Diego, CA
After a week of cloudy weather, the skies have cleared again. Although the moon is now gone, meteor rates continue to be low, especially during the evening hours.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-01-27…11h38m…..33….27……6
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Video Meteor Observations on January 28th from San Diego, CA
After a cloudy day the high clouds thinned enough to allow observations. I had to cut this session a bit short due to work.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ACE SDG…2009-01-28…09h53m…..26….25……1…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
Video Meteor Observations on January 29th from San Diego, CA
This was a dusk to dawn session that captured 33 meteors. One of the shower meteors was a possible member of the Alpha Centaurids, a shower best seen from the southern hemisphere. This shower will only be visible from the latitudes of Tucson and San Diego a few more nights before it fails to clear the horizon.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ACE SDG…2009-01-29…11h37m…..33….28……4…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
Video Meteor Observations on January 30th from San Diego, CA
This session was not quite as long as the previous night as I had a late start. I did manage to record two more members of the Alpha Centaurid shower, one of these meteors being bright and very swift.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ACE SDG…2009-01-30…11h18m…..33….27……4…….2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
Video Meteor Observations on January 31st from San Diego, CA
This session produced the strongest rates since January 5th. The 42 meteors recorded is a 25% increase over the previous night. A quick check of the plots for the night revealed a possible radiant near the constellation of Corvus that produced 5 meteors. This could be related to the February Sextantids, which where discovered by Sirko Molau, during his 2006 investigation of possible video radiants. It will be interesting to see if any more of this activity is repeated tonight.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ACE SDG…2009-01-31…10h40m…..42….35……5…….2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrothe
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
Video Meteor Observations on February 1st from San Diego, CA
Whatever caused the increased rates on the previous night was not evident tonight as only 24 meteors were recorded. Fog rolled in shortly after dark but never totally obscured the sky. As the evening progressed an offshore wind flow pushed the fog back out to sea and the skies remained clear the remainder of the night. Since the fog occurred during the early evening hours, when meteor rates are at their lowest, it cannot be responsible for the low rates seen tonight.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ACE SDG…2009-02-01…11h20m…..24….21……2…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrothe
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
Video Meteor Observations on February 2nd from San Diego, CA
The Earth must have been traveling through some empty space last night as only 16 meteors were recorded. This is the lowest total I can recall for an all night session without interference from clouds.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ACE SDG…2009-02-02…10h33m…..16……15……0…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
Video Meteor Observations on February 2nd from San Diego, CA
The wild swings in meteor activity continues. After a very slow night on the 2nd, meteor rates increased 3x up to 45 on the 3rd. I did not have a chance to check the plots to see if any unlisted radiant was adding to the activity. Clouds are moving into the area and we could see some unsettled weather arrive soon.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ACE SDG…2009-02-03…10h45m…..45…..40……4…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
Video Meteor Observations on February 4th from San Diego, CA
The high clouds that were present all day dissipated soon after sunset. By 8pm PST, it was completely clear. A few wisps appeared during the night, but no enough to reduce the meteor activity. Rates were again above normal with 40 meteors recorded tonight.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ACE SDG…2009-02-04…09h24m…..40….37……2…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
I live in El Cajon (near 2nd and Main Sts). I was walking home around 6:45 when I saw a very bright diamondlike star to the east; As I looked at it in wonder, it seemed more that there were two separate bodies. I assume the bigger was Venus? I tried to find a local news station here but could find no way to get attention to the very bright state of the planet or star. I looked on the net and found this site. Thanks for listening. My husband also saw it and one neighbor.
Thanks!
Barbara
Barbara,
You probably spotted Sirius, the brightest star in the sky. It does indeed appear diamond-like, especially when the atmosphere is turbulent and it twinkles. I cannot explain the two separate bodies as the companion of Sirius cannot be seen without a large telescope. Perhaps the twinkling was so violent it appeared as two objects. Venus is actually brighter and currently appears in the western sky at dusk.
I hope this helps!
Bob Lunsford
San Diego, CA
Video Meteor Observations on February 5th from San Diego, CA
High clouds were present all night long. They were thin enough to allow observations. I decided to start after the moon had set and managed to capture 8 sporadic meteors despite the cloud cover.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ACE SDG…2009-02-05…02h52m…..8…….8…….0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
Video Meteor Observations on February 11th from San Diego, CA
After a week of clouds and rain the skies finally cleared over San Diego. Unfortunately cirrus did appear toward the end of the session, reducing the counts. The forecast is for another round of clouds and rain so this may be the only observation for another week.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-02-11…10h26m…..13….12…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Video Meteor Observations on February 13th from San Diego, CA
I woke early this morning and noticed the skies had cleared. I recorded 8 meteors in slightly over 2 hours of observations.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-02-13…02h07m…..8…….7…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
I wonder if you guys could fill me in on your video observation rigs. I gather you’re using the SuperCircuits cameras, but what kind of lenses are you using on them, how big are the fields of view, what’s the limiting magnitude, and what hardware/software do you use to detect and record the meteors? I was up on all this stuff back around 2000 but I haven’t been following progress lately.
Hi Chris,
I’ve had a post in the queue for months now describing my set-up. I’ll try to get it posted in the next few days.
Thanks for asking,
– Carl
Chris,
For details on my camera visit: http://www.amsmeteors.org/video2008.html
My FOV is 60 degrees with a limiting magnitude of +6.0 from rural locations.
Any further questions, just let me know!
Bob Lunsford
Video Meteor Observations on February 15th from San Diego, CA
There was thin cirrus covering the entire sky at sunset. Not the best conditions but good enough for the camera. The cloud cover became thicker as the night progressed. Even though the camera operated all night, not a single meteor was recorded after 11pm local time due to the thick cirrus.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-02-15…11h09m…..3…….3…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Thanks for the link, Bob. I’m surprised to learn that (apparently) nothing has changed in the last nine years. I had expected the following changes:
1. forsaking analog video output for digital output.
2. bringing MetRec up to full resolution instead of quarter resolution
3. taking advantage of newer video hardware
4. taking advantage of much faster modern CPUs
Have I misread the material I’ve found on MetRec et al?
Chris,
I cannot answer your questions as to the reasons these changes have not been implemented. I would suggest contacting Sirko Molau directly at video@imo.net
I can tell you that a windows based version of MetRec is in the beta phase of testing. When only one person is involved in a program I can imagine that this is the reason changes come slowly.
Bob Lunsford
Video Meteor Observations on February 18th from San Diego, CA
After a few days of wild weather in southern California, skies have again cleared. I had a very short session this morning with nothing exciting happening. The waning crescent moon in among the stars of Scorpius this morning was impressive.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE SDG…2009-02-18…01h45m…..6…….6…….0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
Thanks, Bob. I have forwarded by suggestions to Sirko.
Video Meteor Observations on February 19th from San Diego, CA
Skies were clear all night long. Only 1 shower meteor was detected tonight, a bright magnitude -3 Antihelion.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE SDG…2009-02-19…11h02m….24……23……1…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on February 20th from San Diego, CA
Skies were mostly clear tonight. There was scattered thin cirrus throughout the morning. The cloud cover was not enough to affect observations.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE SDG…2009-02-20…10h31m….23……20……2…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on February 21st from San Diego, CA
After a partly cloudy day, cirrus clouds became more prevalent during the evening hours. They continued to thicken as the night progressed severely hampering my efforts to record any meteor activity.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE SDG…2009-02-21…10h58m…..3…….3…….0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on February 24th from San Diego, CA
Thick cirrus clouds thinned as the night progressed allowing me to record meteor activity during the last 4 1/2 hours of the night. Luckily, this was the most active period of the night with 26 meteors being recorded.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE SDG…2009-02-24…04h27m…..26….23…….3…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
Video Meteor Observations from 2/25-2/27 from San Diego, CA
Clouds have hampered observations on two of the past three nights. On the 24/25th, the evening had high clouds which eventually cleared, allowing 2 meteors to be recorded before fog rolled in. On the 25/26th, it was clear all night allowing 24 meteors to be recorded. On the 26/27th, a two hour evening watch yielded no activity. It cleared again near 1:30am and a 3 hour watch yielded 5 meteors. After 3 hours fog again rolled in ending observations.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE SDG…2009-02-25….3h00m…….2..….2…….0…….0
SDG…2009-02-26…10h53m…..24….23……1…….0
SDG…2009-02-27…02h00m….. 0……0…….0…….0
SDG…2009-02-27…03h00m……5……5…….0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on March 1st from San Diego, CA
The sky was clear but hazy all night. Still no activity from the Delta Leonids to report.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE…GNO SDG…2009-03-01….7h59m……18..…16……2……0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 2nd from San Diego, CA
Thin cirrus was present all night long yet counts were similar to the previous night.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE…GNO SDG…2009-03-02….8h10m……17..…16……1……0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 4th from San Diego, CA
Despite occasional clouds some nice, bright meteors were recorded tonight including my first Delta Leonid and Gamma Normid. It is interesting to note that these two showers, which are active (?) at the same time, have little actual data to prove their existence. I would bet that future radiant lists will delete the Delta Leonids altogether and move the Gamma Normid radiant northward to a more active point in the sky where activity actually seems to be occurring this time of year.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE…GNO SDG…2009-03-04….9h51m……24..…20……2……1…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 5th from San Diego, CA
High clouds gave way to mostly clear skies during the night. I started the camera just after midnight but by 4am low clouds were beginning to form and soon afterward it began raining. Oh well, the lens needed cleaning anyway! Several of the 10 meteors I ended up capturing were quite bright.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE…GNO SDG…2009-03-05….3h57m……10..…9…….1…….0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 6th from San Diego, CA
The skies were partly cloudy during the morning hours. My system had over 1500 hits, unfortunately all but 6 were due to clouds.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…DLE…GNO SDG…2009-03-06….5h15m…….6..…..6…….0…….0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
DLE – Delta Leonids
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 11th from San Diego, CA
The skies finally clear over Southern California allowing an all-night observing session. Unfortunately the moon was full and meteor activity was reduced significantly from normal.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…GNO SDG…2009-03-11…10h15m….14..….10……4…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 17th from San Diego, CA
I had a late start tonight. I managed to catch the brightest Gamma Normid ever for me, roughly in the 0 to -2 magnitude range. It was short and far from the radiant.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…GNO SDG…2009-03-17…06h04m….18..….16……1…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar. 18, 19, and 23 from San Diego, CA
I have been battling clouds here along the west coast. This week actually appears good weather wise.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…GNO SDG…2009-03-18…10h00m….27..….22……4…….1
SDG…2009-03-19…02h00m…. 1..……1…….0…….0
SDG…2009-03-23…05h01m….20..….18……2…….X
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 24th from San Diego, CA
It was dreadfully slow last night. I had 20 detections but half of them turned out to be birds, bugs, or aircraft.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-03-24…09h56m….11..….10……1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Video Meteor Observations on March 25th from San Diego, CA
It was another slow night with the same exact number of meteors seen as the previous night. Good thing the moon is not full or rates would be next to nothing!
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-03-25…09h52m….11..….10……1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Video Meteor Observations on March 26th from San Diego, CA
Fog rolled in during the early morning hours ending this session prematurely.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-03-26…05h47m……5..…..3……2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Video Meteor Observations on March 27th & 28th from San Diego, CA
On Friday morning I woke to clear skies so I had an abbreviated session on that morning. The sky was clear Friday night/Saturday morning and I actually obtained some decent rates this morning.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-03-27…05h18m…..15..…13…..2
SDG…2009-03-28…08h38m…..23..…20…..3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Video Meteor Observations on March 29th & 31st from San Diego, CA
Not much time to post observations lately. On the 29th clouds plagued observations most of the night. The 30th was clouded out completely. Despite a forecast of more clouds, the 31st was totally clear.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-03-29…09h37m……7..….7…….0
SDG…2009-03-31…09h41m…..19….15……4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Video Meteor Observations on April 1st from San Diego, CA
Skies were cloudy during the evening hours. The morning hours were partly cloudy which reduced the available rates.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-04-01…03h26m……6..…..4……2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Hello,
I’m not a specialist, but interested in what happened.
Is this observation of any interest for you?
In Sévaré near Mopti, Mali
coming from SSW going to NNE
nearly horizontal slightly going down fireball
explosion at few minutes to 10pm on October 30 2009 local time Mali
in the east, under en angle of about 30°
explosion, burst in 3-8 pieces (different observers) which continued in same direction
than after a while a very loud noise of detonation,
than after another while a loud grumbling.
I did not see it by myself, but I heard the grumbling when sitting in an outside restaurant under a thatched roof. Next day I tried to have information of eyewitnesses, they had been quite similar to each other
Waiting for an answer, even if it’s negative,
best regards from
Jutta Ratschinske
German lady living in Sévaré since more than 15 years
Video Meteor Observations on April 5th & 6th from San Diego, CA
It’s been clear the past two mornings. An unusually large number of Antihelion meteors were captured on the 6th.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-04-05…08h33m…..21….19……2
SDG…2009-04-06…05h42m…..23….16……7
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Video Meteor Observations on April 7th from San Diego, CA
Rates for the Antihelion radiant were back to normal this morning.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT SDG…2009-04-07…09h26m…..19….17……2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Lyrid Video Observations from the Mojave Desert
I made a 3 night camping trip to the Mojave Desert to view Lyrid activity. It was clear the first night but I lost the last two hours on the second night due to clouds. The third night was totally clear. The video camera ran between 1 and 5am PDT each morning. The dark skies allowed many more meteors than would have been captured from the San Diego area.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…LYR MJD…2009-04-20…04h00m…..57….45……4…….8
MJD…2009-04-21…02h00m…..23….11……5…….7
MJD…2009-04-22…04h00m…..69….34……6……29
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
MJD – Camera in the Mojave Desert operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
LYR – Lyrids
Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
Skies have been mostly cloudy at night in the San Diego area since the Lyrid maximum. In fact I had to drive to the local mountains to record any activity from the Eta Aquariids. We had a 4 hour period of clear skies last night. Rates though were very low.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ETA…ELY SDG…2009-05-06…02h00m…..44….22……3…….19…..0
SDG…2009-05-07…02h00m…..38….18……2…….17…..1
SDG…2009-05-14…03h49m……4…. .3…….1……..0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ETA – Eta Aquariids
ELY – Eta Lyrids
Video Meteor Observations on May 15th from San Diego, CA
I managed to capture activity during the last 3 hours of the night.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ETA SDG…2009-05-15…03h02m…..11…..8…….1…….2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ETA – Eta Aquariids
Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
The past two nights have seen mostly cloudy skies as is usual this time of year along the Pacific coast. I did manage short sessions just before dawn on May 16 and just after dark on Saturday evening.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…ETA SDG…2009-05-16…02h30m……5…..2…….1……..2
SDG…2009-05-17…02h00m……3…..2….…1……. 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
ETA – Eta Aquariids
Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
The past two weeks have seen mostly cloudy skies as is usual this time of year along the Pacific coast. I did manage a short session last night just after dusk. Unfortunately clouds again rolled in only two hours after starting observations.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT
SDG…2009-06-02…02h00m……1……1….…0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Hi!
I just happened to be awake last Sat. night (June 6) at 3am and couldn’t believe the view from my window. We’re in rural SE Berkshire County in western MA, and I was looking south. We had an almost full moon, but here’s this thing looking like a distant headlight – huge – at about 40 degrees up from the horizon. It looked like it had a line under it. My guess is it was Venus, with a distant star just below. I could see it with the lights on in my kitchen and the (almost) full moon outside. With the lights off, it was amazingly bright. (I joked to my husband, if it had been 2000 years earlier, I would’ve gone out and followed that star, LOL.) I’ve been watching the sky for years (I took undergrad earth science & astronomy classes at U of A back in the early 80s!) but I’ve never seen Venus look this big.
Hi Zerlina,
Thanks for the note. It’s also to hear from a fellow Wildcat!
Based on the time and description of what you saw, it probably wasn’t Venus. Venus was still below the horizon at 3am. The only object that fits your description is Jupiter. Though Jupiter is not as bright as Venus, it would have been the brightest thing other than the Moon at the time. In fact, it is currently ~12 times brighter than the brightest star in the sky.
I’m not sure about the line underneath it. There were no bright stars, or even faint stars, that should have been visible in bright Moon light below Jupiter. Was the line only visible through your window or was it visible when you were outside as well. If you only saw it through the window the line might be due to window itself or a screen. I have seen some nifty effects looking at very bright stars and planets through windows.
Hope that helps, and don’t hesitate to ask more questions,
– Carl
Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
Skies have cleared a bit in the San Diego area allowing some observations. June is always cloudy in the San Diego area but this month has been exceptionally bad with only 4 usable nights so far.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT
SDG…2009-06-15…04h00m……2….…1….…1
SDG…2009-06-17…07h17m…..11…..10.…..1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Hi there,
I’m looking for footage or realistic looking animation of a shooting star for my website. It’s the theme of the site, so finding steady or impressive enough footage is proving to be a challenge. I’m putting together a sequence of a meteor in outerspace, coming towards earth and then shooting across the sky. I have animation for the outerspace sequemce from NASA, but the rest…as I said, is a challenge!
If anyone has come across anything I would really appreciate the lead!
Thanks so much!
Estelle
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT
Recent Observations from the San Diego area:
Observations on June 27th were obtained from the dark skies of the Laguna Mountains, east of San Diego. On the 28th, I recorded no activity during the last two hours before dawn. Very unusual! On July 2nd, evening observations were cut short by clouds.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…JBO…ANT
SDG…2009-06-27…04h03m……65….58……1……6
SDG…2009-06-28…02h00m…….0……0.……0……0
SDG…2009-06-30…05h58m……10….10……0……0
SDG…2009-07-02…02h00m…….3……2.……0……1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
JBO – June Bootids
Recent Observations from the San Diego area:
Although we have passed into July, meteor rates continue to be very low. We will not see a large increase until mid-month. The one Alpha Capricornid captured on the morning of the 5th was nearly of fireball brightness.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…CAP…ANT
SDG…2009-07-03…02h00m……3……3…….0…….0
SDG…2009-07-04…03h00m……5……4.……0…….1
SDG…2009-07-05…06h58m……8……7…….1…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Recent Observations from the San Diego area:
Weather conditions in the San Diego area have been variable the past few nights. Either the coastal clouds roll in a few hours after sunset or it has remained clear all night long. Regardless, all observations have been affected by the bright moon, resulting in low rates.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…CAP…ANT
SDG…2009-07-06…02h34m……4……4…….0…….0
SDG…2009-07-07…02h40m……3……2.……0…….1
SDG…2009-07-08…04h14m……3……2.……0…….1
SDG…2009-07-09…01h23m……2……2…….0…….0
SDG…2009-07-10…07h35m……4……4…….0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
Recent Observations from the San Diego area:
With the moon becoming less of a problem, meteor rates finally kicked into high gear. Now I just need some better weather as clouds interfered with observations on the 11th and 14th.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…CAP…SDA
SDG…2009-07-11…04h54m……7……5…….2…….0…….0
SDG…2009-07-12…07h23m…..32….24.…..6…….2…….0
SDG…2009-07-13…07h44m…..40….30.…..5…….2…….3
SDG…2009-07-14…05h47m…..19….16.…..2…….0…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
Video Meteor Observations on July 15th from San Diego, CA
It was clear but hazy the entire night. Meteor rates have increased significantly the past few nights and should remain strong for the next month as several meteor showers are increasing in strength.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…CAP…SDA…PAU
SDG…2009-07-15…07h48m…..41….33…….3…….3……1…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
Video Meteor Observations on July 16th from San Diego, CA
Another clear but hazy night. Rates were down compared to yesterday, especially for the sporadic counts.
Obs….…Date (UT)…..TotTime….TOT…SPO…ANT…CAP…SDA…PAU
SDG…2009-07-16…07h20m…..30….23…….4…….1……1…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
Video Meteor Observations on July 17th from San Diego, CA
There were occasional high clouds during the evening hours. The clouds increased during the morning hours yet I still managed to record 42 meteors.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT..SPO..ANT…CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-17…06h42m.…42….30…..6……1……1……0…..4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on July 18th from San Diego, CA
The skies were partly cloudy from dissipating thunderstorms over northern Baja California. This reduced the number of meteors detected tonight to half of what I should have recorded.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT..SPO..ANT…CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-18…07h53m.…18….11…..3……1……1……0…..2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on July 19th from San Diego, CA
Observations were again affected by clouds throughout the night.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT..SPO..ANT…CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-19…07h54m.…17….9……4….…1……1……1…..1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
Not exactly earth-based, but definitely transitory. Any word on whether there are pre-discovery images that can confirm this?
http://www.universetoday.com/2009/07/19/possible-new-impact-on-jupiter/
Hey Dan,
Thanks for the heads-up. Everything I’ve heard about this dark spot suggests that it was caused by an impact.
Hard to believe it was 15 years ago (to the week) since we were sitting around the house on Helen during the SL9 impacts.
– Carl
Video Meteor Observations on July 20th & 21st from San Diego, CA
I lost the last 30 minutes on the morning of the 20th due to fog.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT..SPO..ANT…CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-20…07h12m.…37….25.…3….…2……1……1…..5
SDG…2009-07-21…07h39m.…37….26.…2….…3……1……0…..5
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on 22nd from San Diego, CA
I lost the last hour due to fog. The lack of Delta Aquarids so far this year seem to validate the new activity period proposed for this shower (July 21 through Aug 30). Rates from this shower should now increase substantially, reaching maximum activity on Thursday July 30.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT..SPO..ANT…CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-22…07h00m.…30….22.…3….…2……0……0…..3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on 23rd from San Diego, CA
Fog rolled in near 2am prematurely ending this session. There was also some altocumulus clouds earlier in the evening that may have also affected the rates.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT..SPO..ANT…CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-23…05h00m.…12….6.…..0….…3……2……0…..1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
I am curious about something I saw in the sky last night. It was about 12:17AM, and I was sitting facing due South. I was looking up into the sky when I saw two lights coming very quickly out of the east and across the sky. They appears about twice the size of a star (in appearance of course) and were travelling very very fast. They were on parallel trajectories for a second then the veered towards each other and back away. They were definately not travelling in straight lines. I wacthed them until they disappeared just below the handle of the big dipper. – well above the horizon. In all it took maybe five seconds (maybe less) for them to cross the sky. I live in Edmonton, Alberta, and have seen plenty of sattelites. I used to sail in Newfoundland and it was a game to watrch for satellites, meteors, cross Altantic flights etc., so I konw what they look like and how fast they travel. In Emdonton we are close to a Canadian Air Force base so I have also seen hercs and F18s. I lived for a while in Israel and also saw those fighters manouvering. What I saw last night was none of the above. Could they have been meteors, same size, on wobbly trajectories? I am curious about this, Any thing you can suggest would be greatl appreciated.
Video Meteor Observations on July 25th from San Diego, CA
After being clouded out on the 24th, skies were better tonight. Fog still managed to roll in around 3am, ending observations prematurely.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT..SPO..ANT…CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-25…06h00m.…21…13.….2….…4……1……0…..1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on July 26th from Mt. Laguna, CA
I took the camera to dark skies on the morning of the 26th. I had a late start so only a little over 2.5 hours of observations was obtained. The next two nights were completely cloudy from the coast. I will be back out in the mountains starting Thursday morning.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT..SPO..ANT…CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-26…02h32m.…59…34.….0….…3…..10..…0….12
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on July 30th from Alpine, CA
I took the camera to dark skies and to get away from the low clouds that have been present along the coast for the past few nights. Alpine lies in the foothills of the Laguna Mountains some 25 miles east of San Diego. The low clouds acted like a blanket over the lights of San Diego and it was actually very dark. Activity was impressive both visually and through the camera. There were a few high clouds present at times, but not enough to spoil the display.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO..ANT..CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-30…04h00m…130…74..…5…….2….30..…1….18
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on July 31st from Alpine, CA
I observed another four hours this morning. The sky did not appear quite as dark as the previous night but there were no high clouds present tonight. Rates were down compared to last night, especially for the sporadic meteors.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO..ANT..CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-07-31…04h00m…102…54..…2…….3….24..…1….18
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion Radiant
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscid Austrinids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 1st from Alpine, CA
I observed another four hours this morning. It was another clear night with impressive rates. The moon interfered during the first hour of observing yet counts were higher than the previous session.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO..ANT..CAP..SDA..PAU..PER
SDG…2009-08-01…04h00m…117….65..…6……4….18..…1….23
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Southern Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscids Australids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 2nd from Alpine, CA
I was limited to two hours this morning due to moonlight. The Delta Aquarid activity dropped off significantly tonight.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO..ANT..CAP..SDA..PER..KCG
SDG…2009-08-02…01h56m….58…..43….2……1……4..…8…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Southern Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscids Australids
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 3rd from Alpine, CA
Once again I was limited to two hours this morning due to moonlight. High clouds appeared during the last half hour but rates were still on par with the previous night.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO..ANT..CAP..SDA..PER..KCG
SDG…2009-08-03…02h02m….62…..40….0……2……6….14.….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Southern Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscids Australids
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 6th from San Diego, CA
After a couple of partly cloudy nights, skies cleared enough to allow observations from home. Fog rolled in just before the start of twilight, ending the session 15 minutes prematurely. No Delta Aquarids were recorded tonight, which is strange as this shower continues for at least another week.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO..ANT..CAP..PAU..PER..KCG
SDG…2009-08-06…07h15m….30….11…..2……3……2…..11.….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscids Australids
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 8th from San Diego, CA
Skies cleared again for the most part. There was some fog during the last couple of hours but the sky was never completely overcast so I kept my camera running until dawn.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO..ANT..CAP..PAU..PER..SDA
SDG…2009-08-08…08h24m….40….24…..0……0……1…..12.…3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscids Australids
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 9th from San Diego, CA
Clouds rolled in near 1am limiting this session to only 4 hours.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO..ANT..CAP..PAU..PER..KCG
SDG…2009-08-09…04h00m….9…….4.…..0……0……1…..3……1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
PAU – Piscids Australids
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 12th from Alpine, CA
I took my system to dark skies near Alpine, CA to view the Perseid maximum. I managed to record 176 meteors during the 4 hour session. This included a slight outburst near 1am PDT when the Earth crossed particles produced in 1610 from the Perseid parent comet Swift-Tuttle. The counts could have been more had it not been for cirrus clouds present during the first hour of the session and bright moonlight, which was present all 4 hours.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO..ANT..CAP..SDA..KCG..PER
SDG…2009-08-12…04h02m…176….21..…3……1…..9..….0….142
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
PER – Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 17th from San Diego, CA
Skies have been mostly cloudy from home since the Perseid maximum on August 12th. Tonight there was a small window of 2.5 hours between dusk and the time the clouds rolled in off the ocean.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime.…TOT….SPO….ANT….PER….KCG
SDG…2009-08-17…02h30m……6…….3.…….1…..…2..……0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 18th from San Diego, CA
It was clear until 11pm PDT, which allowed three hours of meteor recording. Unfortunately the evening hours are the slowest for meteor activity therefore rates were low.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime.…TOT….SPO….ANT….PER….KCG
SDG…2009-08-18…03h00m……5…….3.…….0…..…1..……1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Sun 23 August 2009 – approx 2130hrs – Warrington, Cheshire, England.
Orange flickering sphere sighted moving from South to North on a constant heading for approx 8 seconds before disapearing. Unknown object. Thought you may wish to know?!
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 20th from San Diego, CA
Once again it clouded up three hours after dusk limiting the meteors recorded tonight.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime.…TOT….SPO….ANT….PER….KCG
SDG…2009-08-20…03h00m……3…….2.…….1…..…0..……0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 21st from San Diego, CA
I got a late start but luckily the sky remained clear the entire night.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime.…TOT….SPO….ANT….PER….KCG
SDG…2009-08-21…06h55m…..33……24.……2…..…6..……1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 23rd from San Diego, CA
The sky clouded up just after dusk but then cleared again near 1am. It stayed clear for nearly three hours but I still only managed to record 5 meteors.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime.…TOT….SPO….ANT….PER….KCG
SDG…2009-08-23…02h41m……5…….5.…….0…..…0..……0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 24th from San Diego, CA
Once again I got a bit of a late start but the sky was clear all night long. Good activity tonight, mainly from random activity. Tonight also marks the last of the Perseid meteors for 2009.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime.…TOT….SPO….ANT….PER….KCG
SDG…2009-08-24…08h08m…..50……43.……6…..…1..……0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
PER – Perseids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 25th from San Diego, CA
It was touch and go most of the night with fog rolling in and then rolling back out again. The lower count tonight reflects the interference from fog. The first Aurigid of the season was recorded tonight.
Obs……Date (UT)……TotTime.…TOT….SPO….ANT….AUR….KCG
SDG…2009-08-25…09h01m…..38……34.……2…..…1..……1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
AUR – Aurigids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 26th from San Diego, CA
It was a beautifully clear night, hopefully one of many to come during the late summer and fall!
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT…..AUR
SDG…2009-08-26…..08h58m……49……42..……7……….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
AUR – Aurigids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 27th from San Diego, CA
Rates were very similar to last night. Smoke from a brush fire in Mexico limited the transparency somewhat especially in the southern sky. With the camera point 80 degrees high toward the north, rates were not affected much by the smoke.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT…..AUR
SDG…2009-08-27…..08h57m……47……43..……3……….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
AUR – Aurigids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 28th from San Diego, CA
Rates were again similar to the previous two nights. Smoke from a brush fire in Mexico and scatter cirrus limited the transparency.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT…..AUR
SDG…2009-08-28…..09h12m……48……41..……7……….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
AUR – Aurigids
The comet of Haley was definitively seem in the year 1265 (site states ABOUT 1265.
reference: The Chronicle of Florence of Worcester Medieval Chronicler “INTERNET ARCHIVE” CHAPT. 336 FLORENCE OF WORCESTER. [A.D. 1264, 1265.
It states:336 FLORENCE OF WORCESTER. [A.D. 1264, 1265.
“. . .king and barons, guarded by a powerful armament, the
enemy were afraid to cross over, and the queen’s treasury
being exhausted, her forces returned home after no little
toil and disgrace. When this became known, the navtl
armament was withdrawn.
Memorandum — that if the sea had not been thus guarded,
England would have fallen into the hands of foreigners.
Memorandum also, — that all the boroughs and vilJs, as
well as both the rural and regular clergy, were taxed accord-
ing to their means to furnish for the sea-guard, both fighting
men, and the expenses of maintaining them as long as they
were employed in the service.
A comet was visible in the eastern quarter of the heavens before day break throughout the month of August. It was
of a dull hue, and the direction of its tail was southward. . .”
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 29th from San Diego, CA
Smoke and high clouds limited the activity to half of what would have been seen under clear skies.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT…..AUR
SDG…2009-08-29…..08h56m……27……26..……1……….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
AUR – Aurigids
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 30th from San Diego, CA
Despite a late start and lots of high clouds, I was able to record a decent number of meteors this morning. Although the Aurigids are only two nights away from maximum, they are showing very little activity.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT…..AUR
SDG…2009-08-30…..06h22m……41……39..……2……….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
AUR – Aurigids
Recent Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
The skies have remained mostly clear the past few nights. The Aurigids have been very weak this year.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT…..AUR
SDG…2009-08-31…..09h01m……32……27..……4……….1
SDG…2009-09-01…..07h47m……26……21..……5……….0
SDG…2009-09-02…..06h27m……27……23..……3……….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
AUR – Aurigids
Recent Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
The full moon has reduced meteor rates to half of what is expected this time of year. On the 4th, fog rolled in during the AM hours further reducing the counts.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT…..AUR
SDG…2009-09-03…..09h14m……27……21..……3……….3
SDG…2009-09-04…..09h00m……12……11..……1……….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
AUR – Aurigids
Recent Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
The bright moon and fog during the early morning hours have limited the number of meteors recorded the past two mornings.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……SPE
SDG…2009-09-05…..08h20m……16……15..……1……….0
SDG…2009-09-06…..07h30m……12……10..……2……….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
SPE – September Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on September 7th from San Diego, CA
Clouds rolled in shortly before midnight ending this session prematurely. It was interesting to note that 4 of the 5 meteors recorded tonight occurred during the first hour after dusk, a time of normally very little activity.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……SPE
SDG…2009-09-05…..03h00m…….5……..5..…….0……….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
SPE – September Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on September 8th from San Diego, CA
Like last evening, clouds rolled in shortly before midnight ending this session prematurely.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……SPE
SDG…2009-09-08…..04h11m…….5……..4..…….1……….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
SPE – September Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on September 9th from San Diego, CA
I was only able to get in 3 hours tonight as clouds rolled in near 11pm.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……SPE
SDG…2009-09-09…..03h00m…….3……..3..…….0……….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
SPE – September Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on September 10th from San Diego, CA
Finally it was clear all night and a respectable number of meteors were recorded. I did not realize it, but the moon crossed through the southern portion of the field of view during the last few hours of the morning. This is normally a no-no for intensified systems as very bright objects such as the moon can burn a streak through your field. Luckily, I did not see any damage. This is probably due to the fact the the f-stop on the camera is turned way up (dimming the image) so that the 100,000 gain provided by the intensifier does not saturate the field of view with light.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……SPE
SDG…2009-09-10…..09h37m……30……26..……2……….2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
SPE – September Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on September 11th from San Diego, CA
High clouds from tropical storm Linda plagued observations all night long. I decided to end the session as the last quarter moon began to enter the field of view. With the clouds I would not have captured many more meteors anyway.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……SPE
SDG…2009-09-11…..06h45m…..12…….11..……0……….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
SPE – September Perseids
HI. I just saw a huge “shooting star” just under the moon at 6:10 AM PDT. Any ideas what it was? it looked huge. Thanks. Jennifer
Jennifer,
If you are located in Southern California then most likely it was a fireball. I have also received reports from San Diego and Long Beach concerning this event. Fireballs are meteors that are larger than normal therefore they appear brighter than your regular meteor. Since there are no major meteor showers active at this time I would assume this event was a sporadic (random) meteor.
Congratulations on your sighting!
Bob Lunsford
American Meteor Society
Thanks Bob. Yes, I am in Santa Barbara.
Video Meteor Observations on September 16th from San Diego, CA
Skies finally cleared over the San Diego area. The moon is now only a thin crescent so that helped too. Rates were impressive this morning although only 6 of the 49 seen were associated with any known meteor shower.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……SPE
SDG…2009-09-16…..09h54m…..49…….43..……1……….5
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
SPE – September Perseids
Video Meteor Observations on September 17th from San Diego, CA
The night started out cloudy but the skies cleared a couple of hours after sunset. There were a surprising number of Antihelion meteors recorded tonight.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……SPE
SDG…2009-09-17…..07h56m…..52…….40..……11………1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
SPE – September Perseids
Recent Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
Fog has wreaked havoc on recent observing attempts. The morning of the 21st was the best of this group with the sky remaining clear until 4am PDT.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……DAU
SDG…2009-09-18…..04h00m…….1……..1………0……….0
SDG…2009-09-20…..03h00m…….4……..4..…….0……….0
SDG…2009-09-21…..08h00m……56……43..…..11………2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DAU – Delta Aurigids
On Sept 20th about 10:30pm, I was driving 90 miles south of Las Vegas.
Right in front of me I thought I saw a falling star but it was bigger than
any falling star I have seen. It had a trail of orange/red colors.
Have there been any sightings of fireballs in that area ?
Thanks !
Clydora
Recent Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
The Southern California weather continues to be good one night and cloudy the next. During the last three nights only the 23rd was badly impacted by fog. The 22nd had some fog late in the morning which caused me to quit early. The 24th was dry and transparent, one of the darkest nights I have seen around here. The high number of meteors on that morning reflects these good conditions.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..ANT……DAU
SDG…2009-09-22…..07h27m……38……32……..6……….0
SDG…2009-09-23…..05h00m…….7……..7..…….0……….0
SDG…2009-09-24…..08h00m……67……57..……8….……2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DAU – Delta Aurigids
Clydora,
The AMS has not received any reports of a fireball on the date and time indicated. Please check
http://www.amsmeteors.org/fireball/fireball_log2009.html
for updated reports.
Bob Lunsford
American Meteor Society
Video Meteor Observations on September 25th from San Diego, CA
Another very good night with decent activity. The combined STA/ANT (listed as STA) activity was impressive.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..STA
SDG…2009-09-25…..09h50m…..60…….49..…..11
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
Video Meteor Observations on September 26th from San Diego, CA
Fog cut short my observing session tonight. It looks like the weather has taken a turn for the worse and that I will have to deal with fog for the next week or so.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..STA
SDG…2009-09-26…..07h00m…..32…….25..…..7
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
Video Meteor Observations on September 27th from San Diego, CA
We had some high cloudiness that reduced the meteor counts last night. The fog arrived at dawn so that did not affect the counts.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..STA
SDG…2009-09-27…..09h41m……42……38..……4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
Video Meteor Observations on September 29th from San Diego, CA
After a totally overcast night on the 28th, the fog held off until 11:30pm tonight, which allowed me 2.5 hours observing time but only 2 meteors.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..STA…..SLY
SDG…2009-09-29…..02h34m…….2……..2………0……..0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
SLY – September Lyncids
Video Meteor Observations on October 1st from San Diego, CA
A beautifully clear night produced good rates despite the moonlight. The Southern Taurids were very active producing 20% of the activity seen.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..STA…..SLY
SDG…2009-10-01…..08h11m……76…….59……15……..2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
SLY – September Lyncids
Video Meteor Observations on October 2nd from San Diego, CA
Despite the very clear skies, moonlight seemed to reduce the number of meteors recorded this morning. STA counts were down 50% from yesterday.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT…..SPO…..STA…..SLY
SDG…2009-10-02…..09h36m……59…….47…….7……..5
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
SLY – September Lyncids
Video Meteor Observations on October 3rd from San Diego, CA
A cloudy day gave way to mostly clear skies tonight. There were occasional alto cumulus clouds, which shone brightly in the moonlight, which triggered over a thousand false detections. The full moon was the major reason for the lower counts tonight.
Obs….…Date (UT)….…TotTime..…TOT….SPO…..STA
SDG…2009-10-03…..08h37m……39……36…….3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
On 10/3/09 my husband and I witnessed something in the sky in Oneida, NY. It appeared to be a fireball or comet of some sort. It was very late Saturday night, maybe around midnight. A couple friends also witnessed this sighting, not sure what it was, but it was amazing! Orange in color w/very long stream behind. Lasted much longer than a shooting star, seemed to be moving very slow. Also was very low in the sky. Wish I could have watched longer, but it was in the city and we lost view of it. I am sure other people had to have seen this as well, would love to know what it could have been. Any ideas or other reportings?
Melissa,
The American Meteor Society has received 4 reports of the same object ranging from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia. From yours and other descriptions it appears to be a normal fireball, which is a meteor that is larger than normal and therefore brighter. While most of us think of a meteor zipping along and lasting less than a second, there are also meteors the enter the atmosphere, traveling in the same direction as the Earth (counterclockwise around the sun). These meteors will appear to travel slowly, often lasting 5 seconds or more before finally disappearing. These meteors are most often seen during the evening hours when the sky above is facing the opposite direction in which the Earth is moving.
I hope this helps!
Bob Lunsford
American Meteor Society
Video Meteor Observations on October 6th from San Diego, CA
Cloudy skies were in the forecast for last night but the sky remained mostly clear all night with clouds ringing the horizons, well away from my camera, which is pointed high in the northern sky. We are entering a time when there are many different showers active, unfortunately most of them are weak and only produce a couple of meteors per night. The full moon does not help the situation by reducing activity 75% with its bright glare. Rates should be near a nadir tonight and I expect we will see more activity as the moon wanes and as we approach the Orionid maximum on October 22nd.
Obs….…Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO…STA…ORI…GIA…OCA
SDG…2009-10-06….10h09m…24…..16……6…….1……1……0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
GIA – Giacobinids or Draconids
OCA – October Camelopardalids
Video Meteor Observations on October 7th from San Diego, CA
A bright moon and periodic clouds limited the number of meteors recorded tonight.
Obs….…Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO…STA…ORI…GIA…OCA
SDG…2009-10-07….10h34m…10……8…….1…….1……0……0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
GIA – Giacobinids or Draconids
OCA – October Camelopardalids
Video Meteor Observations on October 8th from San Diego, CA
Much like last night, a bright moon and periodic clouds limited the number of meteors recorded tonight. It was interesting to note the Southern Taurids equaled the sporadic rate last night.
Obs….…Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO…STA…ORI…GIA…OPC
SDG…2009-10-08…..8h56m….18……8…….8…….2……0……0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
GIA – Giacobinids or Draconids
OPC – October Epsilon Piscids
Hi Carl,
It’s Dave up in Victoria, BC. I found your site by accident and really enjoy it. I’m about to start doing a weekly TV slot similar to The Sky at Night on our local station and your site has been a wealth of information regarding meteor showers. Thanks Bud.
Dave
Video Meteor Observations on October 9th from San Diego, CA
More or the same with clouds and the moon…
Obs….…Date (UT)……TotTime…TOT…SPO…STA…ORI…GIA…OPC
SDG…2009-10-09…..9h56m….24……17……7……0……0……0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
GIA – Giacobinids or Draconids
OPC – October Epsilon Piscids
Video Meteor Observations on October 15th from San Diego, CA
After a week of clouds and some sprinkles the sky finally cleared. With the moon now a thin crescent and very transparent skies, the meteor rates skyrocketed.
Obs….Date (UT).…TotTime…TOT…SPO…STA…ORI…SSA…OCU…ZTA
SDG 2009-10-15..10h01m..109…70…..14….18……4……2…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
SSA – Sigma Arietids
OCU – October Ursa Majorids
ZTA – Zeta Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on October 16th from San Diego, CA
It was another excellent night for meteor activity. The overall totals were similar to yesterday. Most notable was the increase in Orionid activity.
Obs….Date (UT).…TotTime…TOT…SPO…STA…ORI…SSA…OCU…ZTA
SDG 2009-10-16..10h31m..112…65…..12….26……3……3…….3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
SSA – Sigma Arietids
OCU – October Ursa Majorids
ZTA – Zeta Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on October 17th from San Diego, CA
For some odd reason the sporadic rates were down nearly 50% from yesterday. It was clear all night long so it was most likely just a quirk and rates should recover tomorrow.
Obs….Date (UT).…TotTime…TOT…SPO…STA…ORI…SSA…OCU…ZTA
SDG 2009-10-17..10h51m…84….34…..15….31……1……0…….3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
SSA – Sigma Arietids
OCU – October Ursa Majorids
ZTA – Zeta Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on October 18th from San Diego, CA
High clouds and fog interfered with observing tonight.
Obs….Date (UT).…TotTime…TOT…SPO…STA…ORI…SSA…EGE…LMI
SDG 2009-10-18..10h30m…59….29……5…..21……1……2……1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
SSA – Sigma Arietids
EGE – Epsilon Geminids
LMI – Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on October 21st from the Mojave Desert, CA
This and the following two reports were made from the Mojave Desert, east of Barstow. Due to battery power I was limited to recording only 4 hours each night. The morning of the 21st was completely clear and produced some good rates along with some impressive Orionid fireballs.
Obs….Date UT).…TotTime…TOT…SPO…STA…NTA…ORI…EGE…LMI
SDG 2009-10-21..4:06m…193….40……7……7…..128…..7……4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
EGE – Epsilon Geminids
LMI – Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on October 22nd from the Mojave Desert, CA
The second night of observing produced even more activity than the first. The unusual number of EGE’s is probably due to misidentified ORI’s. The high number of LMI’s is probably real although we saw less than half this many visually.
Obs….Date UT).…TotTime..TOT..SPO..STA..NTA…ORI..EGE..LMI..OUI
SDG 2009-10-22..4:07m…234..54..…9……7….137…11…12.…4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
EGE – Epsilon Geminids
LMI – Leonis Minorids
OUI – October Ursa Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on October 23rd from the Mojave Desert, CA
My last night from the Mojave Desert was plagued by cirrus clouds and equipment problems. Dead batteries limited my video recording to only two hours. Luckily this two hour period was cloud free.
Obs….Date UT).…TotTime..TOT..SPO..STA..NTA…ORI..EGE..LMI..OUI
SDG 2009-10-23..2h00m….88…17..…2……1…..60…..2…..6.….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
EGE – Epsilon Geminids
LMI – Leonis Minorids
OUI – October Ursa Minorids
Recent Video Meteor Observations from San Diego, CA
Listed below is data from the past 3 nights obtained from home. On the 24th skies clouded up after only 2 hours of observing. The remaining two nights were mostly clear except for some scattered cirrus.
Obs….Date UT).…..TotTime..TOT..SPO..STA..NTA…ORI..EGE..LMI..OUI
SDG 2009-10-24….2h00m….4…..4..….0……0……0……0…..0.….0
SDG 2009-10-25..10h09m..123..31..…9……7…..64…..9…..2.….1
SDG 2009-10-26..10h43m…83…29..…2……2…..43…..2…..1.….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA & ANT’s)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
EGE – Epsilon Geminids
LMI – Leonis Minorids
OUI – October Ursa Minorids
Spotted a shooting fireball with a red trail low to the horizon. The spotting was from the Simi Valley, CA area traveling east to west about 2:30 am on October 26, 2009. Few minutes later higher in the sky 3 white shooting type stars traveled east to west. Curious to know about what it might be. Does anyone know?
Aaron,
This sounds like it could be remnants of the Orionid meteor shower. Although this shower peaked in intensity last week some activity will continue to appear until the second week of November.
Bob Lunsford
American Meteor Society
Video Meteor Observations on October 27th from San Diego, CA
High clouds interfered with observing tonight. The waxing gibbous moon is also becoming a factor as it remains in the sky more of the night.
Obs….Date (UT)….TotTime..TOT..SPO..NTA..STA..ORI..ETT..EGE..BCN
SDG 2009-10-27.10h56m…61….25…..6…..5…..20.…2……1…..1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
ETT – Eta Taurids
EGE – Epsilon Geminids
BCN – Beta Cancrids
Video Meteor Observations on October 28th from San Diego, CA
After a cloudy day and even some sprinkles, the sky began to clear near dusk. During the evening hours there were still lots of cirrus and occasional cumulus clouds floating by. I decided to hold off recording to see if the sky improved. At midnight the sky was still sub par. At 3:15am I woke to totally clear skies and no moon. The ran the camera the remainder of the morning and managed to record 44 meteors in just under 3 hours. The Beta Cancrids were surprisingly active with 5 shower member recorded.
Obs….Date (UT)….TotTime..TOT..SPO..NTA..STA..ORI..ETT..OUI..BCN
SDG 2009-10-28..2h52m….44….18…..2…..3…..15.…1……0…..5
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
ETT – Eta Taurids
OUI – October Ursa Minorids
BCN – Beta Cancrids
Video Meteor Observations on October 29th from San Diego, CA
There was a thin veil of cirrus throughout the night that reduced the number of meteors recorded. The waxing gibbous further brightened the sky while it was above the horizon. Nothing notable in the shower numbers seen last night.
Obs…Date (UT).….TotTime…TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…ETT…BCN
SDG 2009-10-29..11h15m…48….27.…..4…….3.…..11..…1…….2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
ETT – Eta Taurids
OUI – October Ursa Minorids
BCN – Beta Cancrids
Video Meteor Observations on October 30th from San Diego, CA
The thin high clouds continued all night long again. Rates were similar to the previous night.
Obs…Date (UT).….TotTime…TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…ETT…BCN
SDG 2009-10-30..10h41m…44….21.…..4…….4.…..13..…1…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
ETT – Eta Taurids
BCN – Beta Cancrids
Video Meteor Observations on October 31th from San Diego, CA
The thin high clouds finally moved out of the area leaving pristine skies. A bright gibbous moon had less effect under the transparent conditions.
Obs…Date (UT).…..TotTime..TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…ETT…BCN
SDG 2009-10-31..11h12m…61….35.…..5…….4.…..14..…1…….2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
ETT – Eta Taurids
BCN – Beta Cancrids
Video Meteor Observations on Nov. 1 & 2 from San Diego, CA
Clear skies and a bright moon were present both nights. Nothing notable was observed except for a few bright meteors.
Obs…Date (UT).…..TotTime..TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…ETT…BCN
SDG 2009-11-01..11h12m…60….35.…..3…….6.…..12..…2…….2
SDG 2009-11-02..08h03m…52….38.…..2…….3.……8..….0…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
ETT – Eta Taurids
BCN – Beta Cancrids
Video Meteor Observations on November 3rd from San Diego, CA
There were occasional high clouds last night which seemed to have affected the meteor rates more than the full moon.
Obs…Date (UT).…..TotTime..TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…ETT…BCN
SDG 2009-11-03..11h13m…27….17.…..1…….4.……3..….0…….2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
ETT – Eta Taurids
BCN – Beta Cancrids
Video Meteor Observations on November 4th from San Diego, CA
Pretty much clear all of last night. No extraordinary activity to report.
Obs…Date (UT).…..TotTime..TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI
SDG 2009-11-04..11h17m…37….24.…..4…….5.……4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
Video Meteor Observations on November 5th from San Diego, CA
Fog rolled in after only 3 hours of recording tonight. Only 3 meteors were recorded but one of them was a possible Andromedid, a remnant from a once strong meteor shower that produced storms during the 19th century. This particular meteor was very slow and bright. Visually, I recall seeing only one other Andromedid, a bright orange meteor that fragmented as it crossed the sky from east to west. It will be interesting to see what activity occurs from this source as it peaks on November 13th and remains active the entire month of December.
Obs…Date (UT).…..TotTime..TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…AND…LEO
SDG 2009-11-05..03h00m….3……2.……0…….0.……0……1…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
Hi Carl,
We’ve had a bollide on saturday night that was seen from 300km north of Victoria to Washington State. Here is a CBC newswire story about it:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2009/11/08/bc-meteor-vancouver-island-vanderhoof.html
I have an image from our all sky camera at Dominion Astrophysical Observatory. It was raining heavily with very thick cloud cover yet the bollide is detected. It must have been very bright to have been seen under these conditions. If you’d like a copy of the image drop me a line.
Dave
Hi,
I am new to this topic, But I think I saw something that looked liked a commet ( for the lack of word for it) burning through the skies of Muscat, Oman ( +4 GMT) on 8 th Nov, between 5-6 local time. Initially I thought it was a jet with a trail of smoke. But this took the tail with it ! Do apologise for my very basic knowledge and language use. I have searched the web for any news but unable to find it. if someone knows anything I would really like to know what I saw.
Thanks
Chamila
Video Meteor Observations on November 9th from San Diego, CA
The fog that has plagued us the past three nights finally cleared. Unfortunately there were still plenty of high clouds throughout the night plus a half moon to contend with after midnight.
Obs…Date (UT).…..TotTime..TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…AND…LEO
SDG 2009-11-09..07h50m…37….19.……7…….6.…..2……2…….1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
Curious about sighting?
Hello,
Last night, Nov. 08, 2009 at 2200, my friend and I spotted an object in the west, northwestern sky from our location in San Clemente, California. It was a roughly estimated eighteen degrees above the horizon.
The object had flashing red, blue, and white lights as seen through our binocular.
It did not move its apparent position over approximately a half of an hour as compared with other flying objects flashing similar colors.
Further, its lights were very intense. At times it appeared to be more than one object.
Other stars and objects in the sky did not exhibit any of these characteristics, so we are fairly certain it was not our optics.
I would be more than surprised to find out that it was not man made, such as a planet, because I have seen planets and stars through telescopes and nothing appeared as this.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Mitchell
Video Meteor Observations on November 10th from San Diego, CA
I was only able to record during the last two hours of the night. Still, I managed to record 21 meteors.
Obs…Date (UT).…..TotTime..TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…AND…LEO
SDG 2009-11-10..02h01m…21….16.……1…….0.…..1……1…….2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on November 11th from San Diego, CA
It was cloudy all night long with varying layers of high clouds. At times you could see some of the brightest stars but most of the night the sky was blank. Under these conditions only 12 meteors were recorded.
Obs…Date (UT).…..TotTime..TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…AND…LEO
SDG 2009-11-11..11h33m…12…..7.……2…….1..…..1……1…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on November 12th from San Diego, CA
High clouds continue to stream over the San Diego area. There were stars visible at dusk but the skies worsened as the night progressed. I had to quit recording near 1:30am PST as the sky became totally overcast. At 4:45:51 (8:45:51) I recorded the brightest fireball yet captured by my camera. It was a member of the Southern Taurid shower with an estimated brightest near -10.
Obs…Date (UT).…..TotTime..TOT…SPO…NTA…STA…ORI…AND…LEO
SDG 2009-11-12…7h00m…..9……3.……3…….3..…..0……0…….0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
ORI – Orionids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on November 15th from San Diego, CA
Skies finally cleared over the San Diego area and I was able to record all night long. No notable activity was recorded.
Obs..Date (UT)…TotTime..TOT..SPO..NTA..STA..OER..AND..LEO..AMO
SDG 09-11-15..11h18m..43….28.….6…….1..….1…..2…….4…..1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
OER – Omicron Eridanids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
Video Meteor Observations on November 16th from San Diego, CA
It was another crystal clear night in the San Diego area. The Leonids were quite active this morning, gearing up for their best showing tomorrow.
Obs..Date (UT)…TotTime..TOT..SPO..NTA..STA..OER..AND..LEO..AMO
SDG 09-11-16..11h23m…73…46.….3…….5..…2……0…..16…..1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
OER – Omicron Eridanids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
Video Meteor Observations on November 17th from San Diego, CA
The Leonids doubled their totals from last night with 30 shower members being recorded. Several bright sporadics are also suspected of being Leonids. A surprising 5 Andromedids were recorded. The normal is only 1-2 per night. No Omicron Eridanids (OER) were recorded last night.
Obs..Date (UT)…TotTime..TOT..SPO..NTA..STA..NOO..AND..LEO..AMO
SDG 09-11-17..11h11m…79…32.….5……2..….3…….5…..30…..2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
NOO – November Orionids
OER – Omicron Eridanids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
Video Meteor Observations on November 18th from San Diego, CA
Last night saw fog rushing in at dusk only to retreat shortly
thereafter. This went on all night long therefore rates are slightly down compared to yesterday. The Leonids were down significantly from the previous night. I would expect a slight improvement in Leonid rates on the 19th. After a good showing last night. the Andromedids failed to appear tonight.
Obs..Date (UT)…TotTime..TOT..SPO..NTA..STA..NOO..OER..LEO..AMO
SDG 09-11-18..11h40m…62…28.….6……2..….2…….1…..20…..3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
NOO – November Orionids
OER – Omicron Eridanids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
Video Meteor Observations on November 19th from San Diego, CA
Clouds plagued observations most of the night so meteor numbers are far below what they should be.
Obs..Date (UT)…TotTime..TOT..SPO..NTA..STA..NOO..OER..LEO..AMO
SDG 09-11-19.. 7h42m.…37…25.….2……2..….0…….0…..8……0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
NOO – November Orionids
OER – Omicron Eridanids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
Video Meteor Observations on November 20th from San Diego, CA
It was clear and transparent all night long. Rates were back up to what was expected. The Northern Taurids were the most active shower surpassing the Leonids.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA LEO AMO NOO AND OER
SDG Nov-20 11h55m 66 44 9 – 6 2 4 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA – Northern Taurids (Combined activity of the NTA’s & ANT’s)
STA – Southern Taurids (Combined activity of the STA’s & ANT’s)
NOO – November Orionids
OER – Omicron Eridanids
AND – Andromedids
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
Video Meteor Observations on November 21th from San Diego, CA
It was clear up to 0700 UT (11pm PST). After that it was partly cloudy for most of the remainder of the night. After 1200 UT (4am PST) it was almost totally overcast. Meteor totals were only half of what was recorded the previous night. The weather forecast is for more favorable skies tonight through the Thanksgiving holiday.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA LEO AMO NOO AND OER
SDG Nov-21 10h55m 31 22 5 – 1 0 3 0 –
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
NOO – November Orionids
AND – Andromedids
OER – Omicron Eridanids
Video Meteor Observations on November 22th from San Diego, CA
Clouds largely spoiled tonight’s observations. The start was delayed by clouds. The sky cleared near 9pm PST and it remained mostly clear for the next 4 hours. It clouded up again near 1am PST and remained cloudy the remainder of the night.
Obs Date(UT) Time..TOT..SPO..NTA..STA..LEO..AMO..NOO..AND..OER
SDG Nov-22 4h00m…11…5….3….-….0….1….2….0….-
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
NOO – November Orionids
AND – Andromedids
OER – Omicron Eridanids
Video Meteor Observations on November 23rd from San Diego, CA
Skies cleared up nicely compared to last night. Meteor totals were a bit less than what was expected with the nice, transparent skies.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA LEO AMO NOO AND OER
SDG Nov-23 11h46m 51 36 7 – 2 2 3 1 –
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
NOO – November Orionids
AND – Andromedids
OER – Omicron Eridanids
Video Meteor Observations on November 24th from San Diego, CA
It was a brilliantly clear night and meteor rates were near what is expected this time of year.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA LEO AMO NOO AND OER
SDG Nov-24 11h49m 66 49 7 – 4 1 3 2 –
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
NOO – November Orionids
AND – Andromedids
OER – Omicron Eridanids
Video Meteor Observations on November 25th from San Diego, CA
Another totally clear night. Totals were similar to yesterday but the hourly rates were quite variable with wide swings in activity. The evening hours were unusually quiet. Perhaps the first quarter moon is beginning to show its effects. This was the last night for Alpha Monocerotid activity. While we say goodbye to this shower tomorrow we welcome the more active Sigma Hydrids, which peak on December 6th.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA LEO AMO NOO AND
SDG 2009-11-25 11h49m 64 41 9 – 4 3 5 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
LEO – Leonids
AMO – Alpha Monocerotids
NOO – November Orionids
AND – Andromedids
Video Meteor Observations on November 26th from San Diego, CA
It was another totally clear night. Totals were similar to yesterday but without the wide swings in activity. The Northern Taurids were especially strong tonight producing 21% of the total activity.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA LEO HYD NOO AND
SDG 2009-11-26 11h52m 70 46 15 – 3 2 3 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
LEO – Leonids
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
NOO – November Orionids
AND – Andromedids
Video Meteor Observations on November 27th from San Diego, CA
Rates were down significantly tonight with big drops in the NTA’s and sporadics. The waxing gibbous moon is starting to take it’s toll on sky conditions and reducing meteor rates.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA LEO HYD NOO AND
SDG 2009-11-27 11h46m 53 38 7 – 1 2 4 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
LEO – Leonids
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
NOO – November Orionids
AND – Andromedids
Video Meteor Observations on November 30th from San Diego, CA
After two nights of clouds and rain the skies have cleared again. The bright moon affected observations until 10 UT (2am PST). The Sigma Hydrids were the most active shower tonight producing 5 meteors.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA LEO HYD NOO AND PSU
SDG 2009-11-30 11h16m 59 42 4 – 4 5 3 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
LEO – Leonids
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
NOO – November Orionids
AND – Andromedids
PSU – Psi Ursa Majorids
Video Meteor Observations on December 1st from San Diego, CA
It was clear the entire night. The full moon severely reduced the number of meteors recorded tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA HYD NOO PSU PHO PUP
SDG 2009-12-01 11h56m 31 22 3 – 3 3 0 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
NOO – November Orionids
PSU – Psi Ursa Majorids
PHO – December Phoenicids
PUP – Pupplid-Velids
Video Meteor Observations on December 4th from San Diego, CA
After two nights of clouds, the skies cleared enough for video observations. The bright gibbous moon and hazy conditions were not ideal. It was surprising that no northern Taurids were recorded tonight. Even though they are near the end of their activity period, the antihelion meteors included in the NTA count should have amounted to something.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA HYD NOO PSU PHO PUP GEM DAD
SDG 2009-12-04 11h53m 36 26 0 – 4 2 0 0 1 1 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
NOO – November Orionids
PSU – Psi Ursa Majorids
PHO – December Phoenicids
PUP – Pupplid-Velids
GEM – Geminids
DAD – Alpha Draconids
Video Meteor Observations on December 5th from San Diego, CA
Several layers of clouds moved in overnight greatly reducing the number of meteors recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA HYD NOO PSU PHO PUP GEM DAD DLM
SDG 2009-12-05 11h49m 9 5 0 – 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
NOO – November Orionids
PSU – Psi Ursa Majorids
PHO – December Phoenicids
PUP – Pupplid-Velids
GEM – Geminids
DAD – Alpha Draconids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on December 10th from San Diego, CA
After nearly a week of clouds and rain, the sky cleared today. It was short-lived though as high clouds moved in during the night. The evening hours were mostly clear but the more active morning hours were mostly cloudy. I still managed to record 31 meteors, 9 of them belonging to the Geminid shower.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NTA STA HYD NOO PSU PHO PUP GEM DAD DLM
SDG 2009-12-10 11h25m 31 14 4 – 2 – 0 – 0 9 1 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NTA/STA – Northern and Southern Taurids (includes Antihelions)
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
NOO – November Orionids
PSU – Psi Ursa Majorids
PHO – December Phoenicids
PUP – Pupplid-Velids
GEM – Geminids
DAD – Alpha Draconids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on December 11th from San Diego, CA
Skies were mostly clear with only thin cirrus during the evening hours. Lower clouds from an approaching front interfered during the morning hours and eventually forced a premature end to the session. The Puppid-Velids and Monocerotids were unusually active tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT HYD MON PUP GEM DAD DLM
SDG 2009-12-11 09h55m 26 6 1 0 4 3 12 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
MON – Monocerotids
PUP – Pupplid-Velids
GEM – Geminids
DAD – Alpha Draconids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on December 15th from San Diego, CA
After a week of clouds and rain the sky finally cleared. There was still a thin layer of high clouds which seemed to affect the sporadic count more than any of the showers. At 11:51:20 UT (3:51:20 am PST) a Sigma Hydrid fireball estimated at magnitude -7 was captured in the northeastern sky passing just east of the Big Dipper.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GEM HYD MON PUP DAD DLM COM
SDG 2009-12-15 12h00m 71 33 6 16 5 2 0 0 7 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GEM – Geminids
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
MON – Monocerotids
PUP – Puppids/Velids
DAD – December Alpha Draconids
DLM – December Leonids Minorids
COM – Coma Berenicids
Video Meteor Observations on December 16th from San Diego, CA
There was scattered cirrus at dusk last night. Conditions were still good enough for video observations. Unfortunately conditions quickly deteriorated and thicker cirrus prevented the recording of any activity between 0400 and 0900 UT (8pm-1am PST). Conditions improved during the remainder of the morning allowing the recording of some activity before dawn arrived.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GEM HYD MON PUP DAD DLM COM
SDG 2009-12-16 11h58m 32 23 2 2 1 1 – 1 2 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GEM – Geminids
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
MON – Monocerotids
PUP – Puppids/Velids
DAD – December Alpha Draconids
DLM – December Leonids Minorids
COM – Coma Berenicids
Video Meteor Observations on December 17th from San Diego, CA
The cirrus was less widespread than yesterday. It was more prevalent during the evening hours and then cleared during the morning hours. It’s puzzling to see the dip in rates between 11-12 UT when it was mostly clear. It’s also surprising not to see any Antihelions prior to midnight, as the radiant is high in the sky.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT HYD MON DLM COM URS
SDG 2009-12-17 12h00m 64 47 4 4 1 7 1 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
MON – Monocerotids
DLM – December Leonids Minorids
COM – Coma Berenicids
URS – Ursids
Video Meteor Observations on December 18th from San Diego, CA
The cirrus clouds were back tonight with vengeance. It was mostly cloudy until 11UT (3am PST). The next hour seemed to be totally clear and then clouds interfered again the next hour. The last 46 minutes had mostly clear skies again. The new “COM’s” have been a disappointment. They are supposed to be slightly weaker than the “DLM’s” but the difference to me is striking with the “DLM’s” being the far stronger shower. Note that my first Ursid was detected tonight.
Obs…Date(UT)…Time…TOT.SPO.ANT.HYD.MON.DLM.COM.URS
SDG.2009-12-18..11h55m..33..23…4…2…1…2…0…1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
MON – Monocerotids
DLM – December Leonids Minorids
COM – Coma Berenicids
URS – Ursids
Video Meteor Observations on December 19th from San Diego, CA
The cloud cover was not as bad as the previous night but still reduced rates by roughly half. The Coma Berenicids finally came to life last night producing 5 shower members.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT HYD MON DLM COM URS
SDG 2009-12-19 12h04m 39 25 5 2 0 2 5 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
MON – Monocerotids
DLM – December Leonids Minorids
COM – Coma Berenicids
URS – Ursids
Video Meteor Observations on December 19th from San Diego, CA
High clouds severely compromised observing sessions the past two nights. It does not appear the weather will improve before the Ursid maximum on December 22.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT HYD MON DLM COM URS
SDG 2009-12-20 12h03m 19 13 3 1 – 2 0 0
SDG 2009-12-21 11h11m 9 7 0 – – 2 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
HYD – Sigma Hydrids
MON – Monocerotids
DLM – December Leonids Minorids
COM – Coma Berenicids
URS – Ursids
Video Meteor Observations on December 23th from San Diego, CA
Clouds and rain prevented any useful video observations on the 22nd, which was bad timing as this was the maximum night for the Ursid meteor shower. The skies cleared near midnight last night and remained clear the remainder of the morning. Meteor rates varied significantly without any rhyme or reason. No Ursids remained from the maximum that occurred the previous morning.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM URS
SDG 2009-12-23 05h42m 43 36 4 3 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
URS – Ursids
Video Meteor Observations on December 24th from San Diego, CA
It was clear until 1100 UT (3:00 AM PST) when cirrus clouds began to drift over. Rates were compromised the remainder of the session.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2009-12-24 12h05m 42 32 6 4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on December 25th from San Diego, CA
It was another strange night for meteor activity. There was some cirrus present as dusk but they were thin and soon dissipated. Despite the clear skies evening rates were very low, beyond the effect of the first quarter moon. Once again the morning hours saw variable rates under clear skies. A full third of the entire night’s activity occurred between 11-12 UT (3-4am PST).
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2009-12-25 12h05m 42 36 1 5
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on December 26th from San Diego, CA
Meteor activity was a bit more uniform tonight. Totals were nearly identical to the previous two nights. It was mostly clear except for some cirrus and cumulus clouds toward the end of the session.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2009-12-26 11h44m 43 39 3 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on December 27th from San Diego, CA
Clouds prevented observations during the early evening hours. I noticed the sky had cleared at 23:00 PST so I started the camera shortly thereafter. The sky remained clear until near 4:00am PST (12UT) when a thick layer of cirrus moved in from the west. This greatly reduced the observed activity during the final 1.83 hours of observations.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2009-12-27 06h45m 25 19 4 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on December 30th from San Diego, CA
After a couple of days of clouds the skies cleared tonight. The timing was perfect as more clouds arrived at dawn and did not affect observations. Rates were reduced due to the bright moon but the transparent skies still made observations worthwhile.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY
SDG 2009-12-30 11h36m 33 28 4 1 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
Video Meteor Observations on December 31st from San Diego, CA
I woke to clear skies after a cloudy and wet evening. I figured that a small sample of the night’s activity was better than nothing!
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY JLE
SDG 2009-12-31 1h45m 6 6 0 0 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
JLE – January Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on January 1st from San Diego, CA
The sky was clear most of the night except for a few wisps of high clouds that drifted by during the late morning hours. Despite the light from the full moon, meteor rates were decent throughout the night.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY JLE QUA
SDG 2010-01-01 11h49m 39 33 2 0 3 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
JLE – January Leonids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 2nd from San Diego, CA
After a cloudy day the clouds began thinning during the evening hours. I was able to start the camera shortly after 2300 PST. Skies remained clear the remainder of the night. Morning meteor activity was significantly weaker than what was observed on the previous night. Despite being only one day before maximum, the Quadrantids are barely showing any signs of life.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY JLE QUA
SDG 2010-01-02 6h32m 20 16 0 3 0 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
JLE – January Leonids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 3rd from San Diego, CA
Despite the bright moon, it was a good night for meteor activity. It was totally clear all night long except for a few patches of thin cirrus that occasionally drifted by. In addition to the Quadrantids, the sporadic count was abnormally high. My first thought was that perhaps some Quadrantids were misidentified as sporadics. After a close inspection of the plots it was determined that this
was not the case.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY JLE QUA
SDG 2010-01-03 11h59m 75 43 6 3 2 1 20
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
JLE – January Leonids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 4th from San Diego, CA
Thick high clouds delayed the start of recording tonight. It was mostly clear between 3 and 11 UT (7pm to 3am PST). After 11 UT, thick high clouds obscured the sky effectively ending observations for the night.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY JLE QUA
SDG 2010-01-04 7h36m 35 24 6 2 2 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
JLE – January Leonids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 5th from San Diego, CA
Thick cirrus clouds delayed the start of my observing session tonight. After 2200 PST the skies remained clear most of the night. The December Leonis Minorids were quite active tonight producing eight meteors.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY JLE QUA
SDG 2010-01-05 7h36m 51 38 3 8 1 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
JLE – January Leonids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 6th from San Diego, CA
Thick cirrus clouds delayed the start of my observing session tonight. After 2240 PST the clouds were thin enough to allow observations. It was never totally clear tonight as thin cirrus moved in and out all morning long. The last 53 minutes produced some good activity.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY QUA
SDG 2010-01-06 7h13m 37 30 3 3 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 7th from San Diego, CA
It was a fairly impressive night with increasing activity as the night progressed. Shower activity was weak which is normal for this time of year.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY QUA
SDG 2010-01-07 8h53m 52 41 4 4 0 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 8th from San Diego, CA
The night started out well but thick cirrus arrived after 0900 UT (0100am) ruining the remainder of the session.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM AHY QUA
SDG 2010-01-08 10h53m 20 12 4 2 2 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
AHY – Alpha Hydrids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 9th from San Diego, CA
The night started out well but thick cirrus arrived after 0900 UT (0100am) ruining the remainder of the session.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM QUA
SDG 2010-01-09 11h03m 46 39 2 5 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 11th from San Diego, CA
The night of the 10th was lost due to thick cirrus. The skies had cleared during the day allowing dusk to dawn coverage on the 11th. Normal rates for this time of the year were observed.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2010-01-11 11h40m 49 40 5 4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
QUA – Quadrantids
Video Meteor Observations on January 12th from San Diego, CA
This was another dusk to dawn session. Despite the occasional interference from cirrus clouds, rates were good for this time of year.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM XCB
SDG 2010-01-12 11h37m 54 44 4 4 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
XCB – Xi Corona Borealids
Video Meteor Observations on January 14th from San Diego, CA
On the 13th, I only observed three meteors before the skies were clouded over the remainder of the night. Skies were much better tonight but the meteor activity was low.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM XCB
SDG 2010-01-14 10h53m 29 22 4 3 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
XCB – Xi Corona Borealids
Video Meteor Observations on January 15th from San Diego, CA
Skies were clear again tonight but the good meteor rates seen during the first half of the month are now half their prior strength. The drop in rates is usually a bit more gradual this time of year.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM SCC XCB
SDG 2010-01-15 9h12m 33 27 2 4 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
SCC – Southern Delta Cancrids
XCB – Xi Corona Borealids
Video Meteor Observations on January 26th from San Diego, CA
High clouds delayed the start of observations tonight. After 2200 (10pm PST) the
sky cleared enough to begin. Skies were mostly clear the remainder of the night with a few passing strands of cirrus.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2010-01-26 9h12m 35 31 3 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on January 28th from San Diego, CA
A weak storm prevented any observations on the 27th. Tonight, skies were clear
during this entire session. I got off to a late start as I was not home until later in the evening.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2010-01-28 5h47m 21 19 2 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on January 25th from San Diego, CA
Ten nights of clouds and rain have now given way to clear skies. Meteor activity
was good tonight despite the bright moon.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2010-01-25 10h32m 46 39 5 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on January 29th from San Diego, CA
Thick cirrus clouds and a full moon were a bad combination tonight. The highlight of the night was the capture of an Alpha Centaurid meteor.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ACE DLM
SDG 2010-01-29 10h53m 12 10 0 1 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on January 30th from San Diego, CA
No clouds tonight but a bright moon still severely hampered observations.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ACE DLM
SDG 2010-01-30 7h17m 13 11 1 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on February 2nd from San Diego, CA
The last two nights were mostly cloudy and only a couple of meteors were seen each night. Tonight was a bit better but the bright moon is still a major factor, reducing the number of meteors seen.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ACE DLM
SDG 2010-02-02 6h03m 8 7 0 1 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on February 4th from San Diego, CA
Last night was lost to clouds but tonight was perfectly clear. Rates were double
tonight compared to recent sessions but only half that seen last month. Rates should improve slightly once the moon becomes less of a factor.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ACE DLM
SDG 2010-02-04 6h45m 25 20 4 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on February 8th from San Diego, CA
The last four nights were lost due to clouds and rain. Tonight was mostly clear,
with a few drifting clouds, allowing the camera to operate again.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT PIH
SDG 2010-02-08 10h07m 28 25 2 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
PIH – Pi Hydrids
Video Meteor Observations on February 11th from San Diego, CA
I only recorded two meteors on February 9th before the skies clouded over. The 10th was a total loss. Tonight was a typical February night with a total number of meteors in the 30’s.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT BHE
SDG 2010-02-11 10h14m 36 29 5 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
BHE = Beta Herculids
Video Meteor Observations on February 12th from San Diego, CA
Clouds interfered with tonight’s session, reducing counts by 2/3rds.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT BHE
SDG 2010-02-12 7h39m 10 9 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
BHE – Beta Herculids
Video Meteor Observations on February 13th from San Diego, CA
Totally clear tonight. The hours prior to 2am (10 UT) were very slow with hardly
any activity being recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT BHE
SDG 2010-02-13 10h38m 32 30 2 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
BHE – Beta Herculids
Video Meteor Observations on February 14th from San Diego, CA
It was clear from dusk to dawn tonight. It was another typical February night
with very little activity prior to midnight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT BHE
SDG 2010-02-14 9h37m 31 23 5 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
BHE – Beta Herculids
Video Meteor Observations on February 15th from San Diego, CA
The activity on this night was impressive for February. Despite observing for only slightly over five hours, 33 meteors were captured.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-02-15 5h07m 33 29 4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on February 16th from San Diego, CA
Tonight’s activity was more typical of February. Three meteors could be traced back to Centaurus, which is known to produce activity from January through mid-March.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-02-16 10h35m 29 27 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on February 17th from San Diego, CA
Tonight’s activity rebounded a bit compared to last night. Again, three meteors
could be traced back to Centaurus. This was not a sharp radiant like that seen last night, but rather far apart from each other.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-02-17 8h00m 34 32 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on February 18th from San Diego, CA
A typical February night except that no Antihelion activity was recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-02-18 7h48m 26 26 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on February 23th from San Diego, CA
Clouds and rain prevented any observations since February 18th. Rates were fairly decent tonight despite occasional cirrus clouds.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-02-23 10h02m 36 33 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on Marcg 4th from San Diego, CA
Clouds and rain prevented any observations since February 23rd. Although it was clear all night long the bright moon limited the number of meteors seen.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-4 10h00m 1 11 11 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 9th from San Diego, CA
It was another slow morning session. The moon is still causing some interference reducing the number of meteors seen.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-9 5h23m 7 6 1 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 12th from San Diego, CA
It was another slow morning session. The Antihelions seem to be the only shower active these days. No traces of the Gamma Normids so far.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-12 6h09m 11 9 2 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 13th from San Diego, CA
My complaining from yesterday paid off. The 3 Gamma Normids seen this morning are the most I have captured in a single night. That’s not bad considering the far southern declination of the radiant.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-13 6h15m 18 13 2 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 14th from San Diego, CA
A bit less activity occurred tonight. I did capture a nice Antihelion fireball at 2:07 PDT.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-14 5h25m 11 7 3 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 15th from San Diego, CA
Despite some thin cirrus clouds the meteor activity was impressive tonight. Quite unusual for March!
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-15 6h45m 32 30 2 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 16th from San Diego, CA
This is the first dusk till dawn session I have had in some time. Rates were more March-like with only 19 meteors seen all night.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-16 9h24m 19 16 2 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 17th from San Diego, CA
It was another surprisingly active night with 36 meteors recorded. A fireball class meteor was captured heading through Draco at 4:28 PDT.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-17 9h51m 36 31 3 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 18th from San Diego, CA
It was another surprisingly active night with 35 meteors recorded. The Antihelion radiant was especially active producing 5 meteors tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-18 9h55m 35 28 5 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 20th from San Diego, CA
Rates were down quite a bit from the 18th. The Antihelion radiant remains strong producing 6 meteors tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-20 8h58m 21 15 6 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 21st from San Diego, CA
It was a hazy night becoming totally cloudy near 4am. Only 8 meteors were recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-21 5h40m 8 8 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 22nd from San Diego, CA
It was another hazy night with thin clouds at times. Only 7 meteors were recorded, less than one per hour.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2010-03-22 7h51m 7 5 2 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on March 24th from San Diego, CA
The haze is gone and meteor rates improved tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-03-24 7h03m 18 16 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on March 27th from San Diego, CA
Clouds prevented observations that past two nights. It was clear tonight with fairly decent rates. A couple of meteors each were noted from two new radiants, the Zeta Cygnids and the Zeta Serpentids.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ZCY ZSR
SDG 2010-03-27 8h48m 21 15 2 2 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ZCY – Zeta Cygnids
ZSE – Zeta Serpentids
Video Meteor Observations on March 28th from San Diego, CA
The moon is becoming a major factor, reducing rates with its intense glare.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ZCY
SDG 2010-03-28 6h50m 15 11 3 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ZCY – Zeta Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on March 29th from San Diego, CA
Despite clear skies the full moon is making observations difficult. Only 11 meteors were recorded this morning.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ZCY
SDG 2010-03-29 5h15m 11 11 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ZCY – Zeta Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on April 3rd from San Diego, CA
Clouds and rain prevented observations the past 4 nights. It was mostly clear tonight but the bright moon hindered observations.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ZCY
SDG 2010-04-3 9h9m 19 15 3 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ZCY – Zeta Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on April 7th from San Diego, CA
More clouds and rain prevented observations the past 3 nights. With the moon past its last quarter phase, the skies are now darker during the early morning hours. This results in a nice increase in the meteor activity.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ZCY
SDG 2010-04-7 8h30m 28 23 4 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ZCY – Zeta Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on April 8th from San Diego, CA
This was another decent night for meteor activity. The Antihelion was evident tonight producing 6 shower members.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ZCY
SDG 2010-04-8 9h30m 27 20 6 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ZCY – Zeta Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on April 9th from San Diego, CA
I started a bit later than usual tonight. This probably caused the slight drop in rates compared to last night.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ZCY
SDG 2010-04-9 7h20m 23 22 1 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ZCY – Zeta Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on April 14th from San Diego, CA
Clouds prevented observations the past 4 nights. It was still cloudy at dusk tonight but cleared completely by midnight. 21 meteors (including 4 Antihelions) were recorded between midnight and dawn.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-04-14 5h24m 21 17 4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on April 17th from San Diego, CA
Cloudy the past 2 nights. Tonight was a bit hazy but good enough for observations. No Lyrids or Pi Puppids were seen tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT LYR PUP
SDG 2010-04-17 6h06m 14 12 2 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
LYR – Lyrids
PUP – Pi Puppids
Video Meteor Observations on April 20th from San Diego, CA
Cloudy the past 2 nights. I was able to complete a dusk to dawn session tonight. Good activity was recorded. 3 Lyrids were recorded tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT LYR PUP SLE
SDG 2010-04-20 9h17m 30 25 2 3 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
LYR – Lyrids
PUP – Pi Puppids
SLE – Sigma Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on April 23th from San Diego, CA
The Lyrid maximum was missed due to stormy weather. It did not clear until 1am local time this morning. The Lyrids were still fairly strong with 6 shower members being recorded. At 4:20am PDT, a sporadic fireball estimated at magnitude -6 passed through Lyra (directly over Vega) and Hercules.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT HVR LYR NCY PUP SLE
SDG 2010-04-23 4h11m 22 12 1 0 6 2 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
HVR – h-Virginids
LYR – Lyrids
PUP – Pi Puppids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
SLE – Sigma Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on April 25th from San Diego, CA
Totally cloudy last night and partly cloudy tonight which accounted for the low number of meteors recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT HVR LYR NCY PUP SLE
SDG 2010-04-25 5h25m 11 6 1 0 2 1 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
HVR – h-Virginids
LYR – Lyrids
PUP – Pi Puppids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
SLE – Sigma Leonids
Video Meteor Observations on April 26th from San Diego, CA
The skies clouded up shortly after the start of observations and remained cloudy the remainder of the night. Only 1 meteor was recorded before the sky clouded over.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT NCY PUP
SDG 2010-04-26 6h9m 1 1 0 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
PUP – Pi Puppids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on April 30th from San Diego, CA
The past 3 nights had cloudy skies. The weather improved tonight with only a few puffy cumulus clouds passing through the field of view during the early portion of the session. Luckily at 12:20 PDT, another bright fireball, estimated at magnitude -6, passed between some clouds and then out of view, terminating low in the northeast.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ETA NCY
SDG 2010-04-30 6h0m 13 10 2 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ETA – Eta Aquariids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on May 1st from San Diego, CA
Despite clear skies, the moon, just a couple of days past full, reduce the number of meteor recorded tonight. The first Eta Aquariid meteor of the year was recorded tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ETA NCY
SDG 2010-05-01 07h10m 18 13 4 1 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ETA – Eta Aquariids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on May 2nd from San Diego, CA
The skies clouded over after an hour of observing tonight. I kept the camera running just in case it cleared up, but to no avail.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ETA NCY
SDG 2010-05-02 06h30m 4 4 0 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ETA – Eta Aquariids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on May 3rd from San Diego, CA
Skies were much better tonight but I was only able to start recording near 11pm PDT. Despite the bright gibbous moon, 20 meteors were recorded during the nearly six hour session.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ETA NCY
SDG 2010-05-03 05h48m 20 17 2 1 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ETA – Eta Aquariids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on May 4th from San Diego, CA
It was another late start but I still managed to record nearly 30 meteors despite the bright moon. A respectable 6 members of the Eta Aquariid shower were recorded this morning.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ETA NCY
SDG 2010-05-04 05h19m 27 18 6 3 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ETA – Eta Aquariids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on May 5th from San Diego, CA
The sky clouded over after only two hours of observations. There was no chance to record ETA’s or NCY’s.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ETA NCY
SDG 2010-05-05 02h00m 6 3 3 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ETA – Eta Aquariids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on May 6th from San Diego, CA
Once again the sky clouded over early. I was only able to record for one hour and fifteen minutes before clouds rolled in.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ELY ETA NCY
SDG 2010-05-06 01h15m 1 1 0 0 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ELY – Eta Lyrids
ETA – Eta Aquariids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on May 7th from San Diego, CA
Finally a totally clear night! The sky was quite active tonight with 38 meteors being recorded. With the ETA’s at maximum I was able to record ten of these meteors. The Antihelion radiant was also very active tonight with seven shower members being recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ELY ETA NCY
SDG 2010-05-07 07h06m 38 20 7 1 10 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ELY – Eta Lyrids
ETA – Eta Aquariids
NCY – Nu Cygnids
Video Meteor Observations on May 8th from San Diego, CA
Cirrus clouds interfered with observations tonight, reducing the number of meteors recorded significently.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ELY ETA
SDG 2010-05-08 06h53m 12 8 1 0 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ELY – Eta Lyrids
ETA – Eta Aquariids
Video Meteor Observations on May 9th from San Diego, CA
The sky clouded up after only 90 minutes or recording.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ELY ETA
SDG 2010-05-09 01h30m 2 1 1 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ELY – Eta Lyrids
ETA – Eta Aquariids
Video Meteor Observations on May 12th from San Diego, CA
The sky remained clear all night long. A surprising 8 ETA’s were recorded this morning indicating that this shower is still going on strong.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ELY ETA
SDG 2010-05-12 06h15m 29 19 2 0 8
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ELY – Eta Lyrids
ETA – Eta Aquariids
Video Meteor Observations on May 13th from San Diego, CA
Skies clouded up after three hours of observations, preventing me from recording any more ETA’s or ELY’s.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ELY ETA
SDG 2010-05-13 02h58m 5 4 1 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
ELY – Eta Lyrids
ETA – Eta Aquariids
Video Meteor Observations on May 24th from San Diego, CA
The past 10 nights have been totally overcast. Tonight I started the camera a little after 11pm local time and ran it until dawn. A total of only 6 meteors were recorded due to the bright moon anfd the hazy skies.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-05-24 05h22m 6 5 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on May 26th from San Diego, CA
Only 6 meteors were recorded during 6 1/2 hours of observing. Again, the full moon and hazy skies plagued observing attempts.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-05-26 06h37m 6 3 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on May 27th from San Diego, CA
I had the camera running all night long but clouds covered the sky after only 1 1/2 hours of observing.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-05-27 01h32m 3 3 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on May 29th from San Diego, CA
Clear the entire night but the full moon reduced meteor activity.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-05-29 05h43m 20 18 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on May 30th from San Diego, CA
Conditions and results were similar to last night.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-05-30 05h57m 22 19 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on June 3rd from San Diego, CA
The camera ran from dusk until dawn, but the skies clouded up after only 1 1/2 hours of observing.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-06-03 01h32m 4 4 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on June 5th from San Diego, CA
Again the camera ran from dusk until dawn, but the skies clouded up after only one hour of observing.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-06-05 00h56m 2 1 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on June 14th from San Diego, CA
The past 9 nights have been totally overcast. Tonight I started just before 10pm and skies clouded up after 1:30am.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2010-06-14 03h30m 5 5 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
Video Meteor Observations on June 22th from San Diego, CA
Another week of totally cloudy skies at night. I was surprised to see clear skies tonight so I got a late start. I started at 12:13 but unfortunately the clear skies only lasted just under 2 hours.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DPI JBO
SDG 2010-06-22 01h48m 1 1 0 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DPI – Delta Piscids
JBO – June Bootids
Video Meteor Observations on June 23rd from San Diego, CA
I started at 9:00pm tonight and clear skies lasted until 1:40am
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DPI JBO
SDG 2010-06-23 01h48m 13 9 3 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
DPI – Delta Piscids
JBO – June Bootids
Video Meteor Observations on July 13th from San Diego, CA
Another 3 week stretch with totally cloudy skies at night. I has been an unusually cool and cloudy late spring/early summer season. It was clear all night tonight but I got a late start. As expected, the meteor activity was much better than last month.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT CAN CAP JPG PER SDA
SDG 2010-07-13 04h01m 33 26 0 2 2 1 1 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
CAN – c-Andromedids
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
JPG – July Pegasids
PER – Perseids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
Video Meteor Observations on July 14th from San Diego, CA
I ran the camera from dusk to dawn tonight as it was clear all night long. The Antihelion radint produced an impressive 6 meteors tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT CAN CAP JPG PER SDA
SDG 2010-07-14 07h55m 47 29 6 2 2 3 4 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
CAN – c-Andromedids
CAP – Alpha Capricornids
JPG – July Pegasids
PER – Perseids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
Wants to buy a telescope for years to come, a very good one please need advise
Video Meteor Observations on Aug 13th from Mt. Laguna, CA
I was able to observe for nearly 5 hours tonight under brilliantly clear skies on Mt. Laguna. The Perseids put on an impressive display with many bright meteors.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT AUD BPE ERI KCG PER SDA
SDG 2010-08-13 04h48m 294 68 8 1 6 9 2 194 6
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
AUD – August Draconids
BPE– Beta Perseids
ERI – Eridanids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
PER – Perseids
SDA – Delta Aquariids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 10 from San Diego, CA
After several weeks of downtime, my computer is working again. I was able run the camera for nearly six hours this morning and managed to catch 35 meteors.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE SIC SPE STA
SDG 2010-08-13 04h48m 35 27 1 0 4 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
NUE – Nu Eridanids
SIC – September Cassiopeiads
ERI – Eridanids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
SPE – September Perseids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 13 from San Diego, CA
I ran the camera for nearly seven hours this morning. Totals were nearly identical to those seen on the 10th.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE SIC SPE STA
SDG 2010-09-13 06h45m 34 23 1 1 1 8
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelions
NUE – Nu Eridanids
SIC – September Cassiopeiads
ERI – Eridanids
KCG – Kappa Cygnids
SPE – September Perseids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 14 from San Diego, CA
Rates are remaining steady, perhaps dropping a bit due to the waxing moon now approaching its first quarter phase.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE STA
SDG 2010-09-14 07h07m 32 27 0 5
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NUE – Nu Eridanids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 15 from San Diego, CA
I was forced to shut the camera off a bit early this morning due to fog. Once again, no Nu Eridanid activity was recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE STA
SDG 2010-09-15 04h25m 16 11 0 5
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NUE – Nu Eridanids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 16 from San Diego, CA
It was clear tonight, but hazy, whcihed reduced the meteor totals. The Southern Taurid activity was off quite a bit tonight compared to recent nights.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE STA
SDG 2010-09-16 06h27m 26 23 1 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NUE – Nu Eridanids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 17 from San Diego, CA
The skies clouded up after only one hour of observations. That was a busy hour though with 12 meteors being recorded. This is most unusual for the late evening hours.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE STA
SDG 2010-09-17 01h03m 12 11 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NUE – Nu Eridanids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 18 from San Diego, CA
Clear but hazy skies tonight. There was a lot of activity despite the bright moon. An impressive 6 members of the Nu Eridanids were recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE STA
SDG 2010-09-18 06h16m 42 31 6 5
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NUE – Nu Eridanids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 19 from San Diego, CA
Fog rolled in around 3am PDT, prematurely ending observations tonight. The bright moon limited activity while it was clear.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE STA
SDG 2010-09-19 04h43m 17 13 1 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NUE – Nu Eridanids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 20 from San Diego, CA
It was clear the entire night and rates were good despite the bright moon. The Nu Eridanids were once again impressive contributing 5 meteors to the total count.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE STA
SDG 2010-09-20 05h40m 31 20 5 6
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NUE – Nu Eridanids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 24 from San Diego, CA
While it was clear all night long, glare from the full moon reduced the number of meteors recorded tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO NUE STA
SDG 2010-09-24 07h57m 28 22 2 4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
NUE – Nu Eridanids
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 25 from San Diego, CA
Activity was slightly better than last night, but the moon still reduces the number of meteors recorded. The situation will not improve until the moon passes its last quarter phase next week.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO STA
SDG 2010-09-25 06h33m 31 26 5
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Sept 26 from San Diego, CA
There was a bit of cirrus last night which poses problems when a bright moon is out. As expected, rates were lower last night with only 24 meteor being recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO STA
SDG 2010-09-26 05h27m 24 21 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
STA – Southern Taurids
Video Meteor Observations on Jan 25, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The sky was clear the entire night. I had somewhat of a late start as I was busy at sunset plus I had to tweak some settings on my new computer to get it to work properly. Meteor totals are close to what is to be expected for this setup in late January.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2011-01-22 08h30m 40 36 2 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on Jan 26, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The sky was clear the entire night. I still started about 30 minutes late due to computer problems. Meteor totals for the night are near normal but the individual shower totals are high. The 27 sporadics are low for an entire night for this setup. The ANT’s and the DLM’s produced 6 and 4 meteors respectively, which is higher than normal this time of year.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2011-01-26 10h37m 37 27 6 4
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on Jan 27, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The sky was clear the entire night. It was another good night for shower activity with 6 Antihelion and 3 December Leonis Minorids being recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT DLM
SDG 2011-01-27 10h58m 52 43 6 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on Jan 28, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The sky was clear the entire night. Activity was less than the previous few nights. Surprisingly 3 Alpha Centaurids were recorded on the first night of their activity period.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ACE DLM
SDG 2011-01-28 11h17m 37 28 5 3 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on Jan 29, 2011, from San Diego, CA
This was the last of a nice clear stretch observed in extreme southwestern CA. The sky was clear all night long. A waning crescent moon rose late in the session but did not compromise observations. Rates were good with 41 meteors being recorded. The Alpha Centaurids continue to be strong with 4 members being recorded during the last few hours of the night. No December Leonis Minorids were recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ACE DLM
SDG 2011-01-29 11h28m 41 34 3 4 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 1, 2011, from San Diego, CA
I lost two nights due to clouds and rain. The day of February 1st was partly cloudy but the sky had totally cleared by sunset. Unfortunately there were clouds off the coast which arrived after sunset preventing me from recording any activity prior to 10:20 PST. It remained clear until 00:20 when another patch of clouds obscured the sky. This lasted until 01:30, when it finally cleared for the remainder of the night. Although it was clear during the time the ACE radiant was above the horizon, no activity from that radiant was recorded this morning. Totals from the other sources of activity were compromised due to clouds.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ACE DLM
SDG 2011-02-01 11h26m 23 20 2 0 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
DLM – December Leonis Minorids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 5, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The camera was working all night long. Conditions were not the best as cirrus
clouds often covered much of the sky. Rates were accordingly low. The highlight
of the night was the recording of two members of the Pi Hydrids. Plots did not
reveal any other possible radiants.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ACE PHI
SDG 2011-02-01 11h31m 24 20 2 0 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
PIH – Pi Hydrids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 6, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The weather conditions continue to deteriorate as a front passes to the north.
The evening hours had patches of low clouds interfering with observations,
especially between 6-8UT (10pm-12am PST). After 10UT (2am PST) the sky
became completely overcast and observations were stopped. Only five meteors
were recorded, nothing noteworthy.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT ACE PHI
SDG 2011-02-06 7h37m 5 4 1 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
ACE – Alpha Centaurids
PIH – Pi Hydrids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 7, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Contrary to the weather forecast, the sky remained clear the entire night.
Despite the favorable conditions, meteor totals were unimpressive. We
have lost the Alpha Centaurids from this site as the radiant does not now
clear the southern horizon.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT PHI
SDG 2011-02-07 9h53m 26 22 4 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
PIH – Pi Hydrids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 8, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Clouds were a problem tonight. The the sky was clear from dusk to 2000 (8pm PST). After 2000, clouds interfered with observing until 2300 (11pm PST), when skies cleared again. It remained clear until 0130, when it became totally overcast and remained that way the remainder of the night. Of the 14 meteors recorded, only one was associated with a shower (Antihelion). Plots did not reveal any other possible radiants.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT PHI
SDG 2011-02-08 6h38m 14 13 1 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
PIH – Pi Hydrids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 9, 2011, from San Diego, CA
This was one of the slowest video sessions ever for this camera. Despite the clear skies the camera only recorded 10 meteors in seven hours of recording. I may have expected these results this time of year had the moon been full, but the moon was not even above the horizon during this session.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2011-02-09 7h01m 10 8 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 10, 2011, from San Diego, CA
What a difference a night makes! In 9 hours of recording the camera recorded an impressive 35 meteors. While 30 of these were sporadic meteors, also recorded were 4 Antihelion meteors and one rare Beta Herculid.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT BHE
SDG 2011-02-10 9h09m 35 30 4 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
BHE – Beta Herculids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 11, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The impressive rates continued tonight with 41 meteors recorded in just under 10 hours. There was a lot of meteor activity from the constellation of Leo tonight. None of them formed anything that could be called a radiant other than the wide Antihelion source. 4 meteors did form a tight radiant in central Covus as well and near the the bright star Spica, in the constellation of Virgo. These sources will need to be watched in the upcoming nights.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT BHE
SDG 2011-02-11 9h51m 41 37 4 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
BHE – Beta Herculids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 12, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Meteor rates were back down to normal tonight, perhaps due to the influence of the waxing gibbous moon. As for the possible radiants mentioned yesterday, only 2 meteors skimmed Corvus and none passed near Spica. Perhaps these were sporadics that happened to line up or else a display of very short duration? The 5 Antihelion meteors that were recorded tonight formed an unusual, tight radiant. The radiant is normally wider and the meteors more scattered.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT BHE
SDG 2011-02-12 11h11m 25 19 5 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
BHE – Beta Herculids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 13, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Meteor rates surprisingly rebounded up to 31 tonight despite the increasing lunar interference. Antihelion activity fell more than 50% from the previous night, but 2 Beta Herculids were recorded. Also of interest were 5 meteors that formed a tight radiant near Alpha Serpentis. Also of note was a pinpoint radiant of three meteors in a rather blank area of central Ophiuchus.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT BHE
SDG 2011-02-13 10h32m 31 27 2 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
BHE – Beta Herculids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 14, 2011, from San Diego, CA
For the first time in quite awhile, clouds were a problem tonight. There were mid-level clouds early in the session and then high clouds late. This reduced the activity to less than half of what should have been recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT BHE
SDG 2011-02-14 10h25m 10 9 1 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
BHE – Beta Herculids
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 15, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The forecast was for cloudy skies but the sky was clear the entire night. Despite the bright moon that was above the horizon most of the night, a decent total of 22 meteors were recorded. The constellation of Leo was once again the center of attention with 3 Antihelion and several sporadic meteors. Our weather forecast calls for clouds and rain for the next week. It has been a nice run of 15 nights in a row with observations. Not bad for this area in February! Hopefully we can return to better weather later in the month and on into March.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2011-02-15 9h53m 22 19 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 21, 2011, from San Diego, CA
We lost 5 nights due to recent storms that affected both San Diego and Tucson. This night had lots of post-frontal cirrus and a bright moon, which accounted for the low counts.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2011-02-21 8h01m 13 11 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 22, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The sky was clear at dusk but clouds quickly formed during the early evening hours, covering the entire sky by 2200 (10pm). No meteor activity was recorded after this time.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2011-02-22 10h16m 3 2 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 23, 2011, from San Diego, CA
There was thick cirrus covering the sky at dusk. Only two sporadic meteors were recorded before low clouds and fog formed to totally obscure the sky after 2300 (11pm PST).
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2011-02-23 1h35m 2 2 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
Video Meteor Observations on Feb 28, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Another storm passed through the area preventing observations since the 23rd. Tonight was perfectly clear and transparent. Activity was very good with 44 meteors recorded over the course of the night. A surprising two Gamma Normids were recorded early in its activity period. While plots revealed no tight radiants tonight, Leo and Ophiuchus appeared to be areas of noticable activity.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2011-02-28 10h02m 44 38 4 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar 1, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Another perfectly clear night with good activity. Two more Gamma Normids were recorded tonight. Leo and Ophiuchus continue to see a lot of meteor activity.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2011-03-01 10h06m 41 37 2 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar 2, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Another perfectly clear night with slightly less activity than last night. Occasional thin cirrus clouds could have reduced the counts tonight. Two more Gamma Normids were recorded tonight. The Antihelion radiant was more active than usual with 5 members. There were three areas in Ophiuchus that presented possible radiants. None had more than four meteors and they were not particularly sharp so these are most likely sporadic aligments.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2011-03-02 10h36m 34 27 5 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar 5, 2011, from San Diego, CA
The last two nights were lost to clouds. Tonight was perfectly clear night but rates were down significently from the first two sessions this month. Two more Gamma Normids were recorded tonight. The first of these was very bright with an estimated magnitude near -3. It shot northward and ended near the handle of the Big Dipper. Plots revealed nothing of note tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2011-03-05 10h10m 23 19 2 2
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar 6, 2011, from San Diego, CA
It was mostly clear tonight but with occasional cirrus and mid-level clouds. Overall activity was somewhat quiet but the Gamma Normids and Antihelion were active compared to the sporadic counts. There was a tight radiant in eastern Ophiuchus that produced four of the fifteen spordic meteors recorded tonight. It was not close to any bright star but located directly between Beta and Eta Ophiuchi.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT
SDG 2011-03-06 10h31m 20 15 2 3
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar 9, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Another storm passed through the area preventing any observations on the 7th and 8th. Tonight was totally clear but I had a late start. Still, more meteors were recorded tonight than during the two previous all night sessions. No Gamma Normids were recorded nor did plots reveal any other possible radiants.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2011-03-09 7h23m 24 22 2 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar 10, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Tonight was mostly clear with only occasional cirrus drifting by. Meteor rates were similar to last night with no exceptional activity. Plots showed a lot of activity in Leo, most which can be associated with the nearby Antihelion radiant. One member of the Gamma Normids was recorded.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2011-03-10 9h45m 29 25 3 1
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar 11, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Tonight was clear but I had a late start. Activity was average but with a few more Antihelion meteors than normal. Plots did not reveal any potential radiants tonight.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2011-03-11 5h35m 23 17 6 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar 13, 2011, from San Diego, CA
It was clear at dusk but soon clouded up. Skies cleared after midnight but remained cloud-free for only an hour. Only 4 meteors were recorded before the skies clouded up for the remainder of the night.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2011-03-13 9h33m 4 4 0 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
Video Meteor Observations on Mar 14, 2011, from San Diego, CA
Despite the forecast for cloudy skies, the sky remained relatively clear all night long. Only an occasional high cloud obscured the sky at times. Meteor rates were a bit on the low side. The waxing gibbous moon is probably beginning to cause some interference. The Antihelion radiant remained busy producing nearly a quarter of the night’s activity. Plots did not reveal any possible radiants.
Obs Date(UT) Time TOT SPO ANT GNO
SDG 2011-03-14 11h12m 21 16 5 0
TUS – Camera in Tucson operated by Carl Hergenrother
SDG – Camera in San Diego operated by Bob Lunsford
TotTime – Total amount of time each camera looked for meteors
TOT – Total number of meteors detected
SPO – Sporadics (meteors not affiliated with any particular meteor shower)
ANT – Antihelion meteors
GNO – Gamma Normids
on 4/9/11 approx. 2330 we spotted a large bright “meteor” moving low overhead from east to west over indiana.ball was blue which later turned to blue with green.train was orange with red lines approx. 2 -3 deg long.very bright almost full moon like and vivid colorization.i hope others saw it as well
Video Meteor Observations on Sep 27, 2011, from San Diego, CA
I have had lots of problems with hardware for many reasons. The weather this summer has also been very uncooperative. Hopefully I can get this system running again smoothly and have clearer skies!
Bob Lunsford
Sep 27, 2011
0825-0900 UT Teff 0.58 FOV 045 +55 TOTAL 03 SPO 03 STA 00
0900-1000 UT Teff 1.00 FOV 055 +55 TOTAL 03 SPO 03 STA 00
1000-1100 UT Teff 1.00 FOV 070 +55 TOTAL 08 SPO 08 STA 00
1100-1200 UT Teff 1.00 FOV 085 +55 TOTAL 11 SPO 10 STA 01
1200-1246 UT Teff 0.77 FOV 095 +55 TOTAL 03 SPO 03 STA 00
TOTALS Teff 4.35 TOTAL 28 SPO 27 STA 01
The moon was not visible during this session.
Universal Time (UT) = PST+7 hrs
Teff = Effective observing time in hours
FOV = Center of camera’s Field Of View
SPO = Sporadic (random) meteors
STA = Southern Taurids
Visiting southern Alberta for holiday and just happened to look out of the window to the night sky. Just before I turned away a blue light with a reddish orange tail streaked towards the horizon at a 30* angle. It took a second to register, but the hair began to lift off my arms in excitement. So lucky to have witnessed this and would love to hear of more stories.
Hello
I am unsure of your message I received, as I am quite new to this website. This is a new area of interest for me and am very excited to learn more….
Always looking up,
Katherine.
Hello
I have been learning that our magnetic poles are moving. In fact they seem to be moving at a rate of 50 km a year, creating a weaker magnetic field protecting our earth. Would this give greater opportunity to witness astrological activity?
Always looking up
Katherine
While in Northern California in early July I saw what I thought was a comet with a bright tail. It didn’t move, but just stayed there for a good 10 minutes or more. I wasn’t sure what it was at first because we saw it during the day and at first I thought it was just an airplane trial, but it wasn’t moving, so I’m very curious about it
. It was around July 6th, Any reports about it?