Pegasus Research Consortium

 ;D


this is a good one to catch ~bundle up ;D

The annual Leonid meteor shower reaches its peak this week and may get a boost from a moonless weekend sky.

The actual peak of the 2012 Leonid meteor shower is on Saturday (Nov. 17) at 3 a.m. EST, but, like all meteor showers, the celestial fireworks display will be visible for a few nights before and after that peak time, weather permitting. Because the moon will have set by that time, its bright glow won't wash out any Leonids you may see.

The Leonids are associated with the periodic comet Tempel-Tuttle, first discovered in 1865. This comet has a period of 33.2 years. It was last close to the sun in 1998 and will return in 2031. After Tempel-Tuttle's discovery, it was traced back to a comet observed in 1366.



Astronomers also realized that Tempel-Tuttle's last close approach to the sun was in 1833, which coincided with one of the greatest meteor storms in history. This was when they put two and two together, and realized that meteors had their origins in comets. [Amazing Leonid Meteor Shower Photos

more here
http://www.space.com/18481-leonid-meteor-shower-2012-weekend-sky.html







This shower is named the Leonids because they appear to radiate from a point just inside the Sickle of the constellation Leo. It's not important to know exactly where the radiant is because the longest and brightest meteors are usually about 90 degrees away from the radiant. The radiant will be roughly half way up the eastern sky for most northern observers, so the best directions to look are south, north, and directly overhead.

Although the peak is predicted for 3 a.m. EST Saturday morning, Leonids may be seen at any time in the night, and for a day or two before and after Saturday morning.



Leonid meteor storms

On rare occasions, perhaps once a decade, observers see what are called meteor storms, when dozens of meteors can be seen every hour. The Leonid meteor shower is famous because it has caused a large number of meteor storms over the centuries.

Because the distribution of meteoroids along its parent comet Tempel-Tuttle's orbit is not uniform, it tends to produce meteor storms every 33 years, the same period as the comet. Careful observations have enabled mapping of clumps of meteoroids within the stream, leading to increasingly accurate predictions. There were spectacular Leonid storms in 1999, 2001, and 2002.

No meteor storm is predicted for 2012, but the Leonids can always be counted on to provide a good show, especially since there will be no moon to interfere with them this year.

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and if you missed The solar eclipse over Australia  you can see it here

http://www.shadowandsubstance.com/

8)

Cool!! Expect UFO reports and fireballs.

Oh and if anyone finds a meteorite, feel free to send it to PRC's resident geologist for analysis :D

::)