shooting star

Smoggy

I just saw a shooying star and it was in Dublin with all the light polution. A'm I right in thinking that its a meteroid breaking up in the atmosphere ?

Flukey

Yes. You can expect to see a lot of them over the coming few weeks as the Perseid Meteor Shower reaches its peak around August 11th and 12th. Both before and after that you will see them, so we have a few weeks of this. Even in Dublin, with our light pollution and that of a strong moon by the peak, we shall still see some. So keep looking on any clear night for a few weeks.

Flukey

After posting the above post, in the early hours this morning, I went to bed. Conscious of the subject matter I thought I'd have a look out my bedroom window, as I often do anyway being interested in astronomy. Immediately, as if it had been waiting for me to look out and straight in the direction I was looking, I saw a fantastic meteor. It was probably the best I have ever seen. It was like one of those halloween fireworks, bright green, zooming downwards naturally.

As with any meteor, in an instant it was gone with no evidence that it had been there, but I know I saw it. It wasn't the clearest night, being a bit hazy, but I could see stars. A few minutes later I saw another high above me, and when I looked up, just for a moment there was a streak in the sky, confirming that I had seen it.

Unlike fireworks, a meteor leaves no evidence that it happened. No sound, no repeat in the same position. Just on a very rare occasion you see a streak after it, as I did with the second one I saw. I kept a lookout for some more for a few minutes, but saw no more. The two I had seen, especially that first one, were fabulous, so I can't complain. I live in the Dublin suburbs, with light pollution and it was a hazy night, and I can only see a small part of the sky from my bedroom window. So if I can see what I saw, then my advice to you all, is keep an eye out. Happy star and meteor gazing!:)

seinstein

Yes Flukey, I saw one at about 2:05am, i've seen about 6 or 7 in my entire life and none compared to it. it was to the east i think looked like it was over the Irish sea. most of the ones i see are really high in the sky like little red lazer beams but this was huge, like a green bolt of lightening, i think i saw what looked like the nucleus of it. it was very low in the sky but it was definitely the biggest,brightest,best i've ever seen.:D

the way you saw it seems cool!...as if it was trying to to contact you....

I saw the 1 i saw because i was staring at the Garda heli it was chasing cars
& behind it i saw the meteor..It was worth getting out of bed to look at the heli 'cause i saw the meteor too.....I sure hope to see more....please post if you have more info on the shower...thanx!:cool:

Flukey

That one you saw was quite possibly the one I saw, as it was around the same time. It was towards the east or south east over the Irish Sea. It was spectacular. It was green looking alright, as I said above. I am sure it was the same one that you saw.

The current shower, the Perseids, get their name from the constellation Perseus. Perseus, or the other associated constellations with known meteor showers, are just where the radiant, the point that the meteors seem to emanate from, is based. You have the Leonids in mid-November, where the radiant is in Leo, Gemini and the Geminids in the second week of December and others. The Quadrantids, in early January, come from a part of Bootes, which was part of the defunct constellation of Quadrans.

In any case, the radiant is not that important as, while the meterors seem to come from that general area, they fly out in different directions and therefore will cross different parts of the skies. The two I saw last night were in different parts of the sky, taking different trajectories and flying in completely different directions.

So with any meteor shower, what you do up is look up and scan different parts of the sky. If you are lucky, like I was with the first one I saw last night, you could be looking at the right time in the right place and get a perfect view. Most you will just see out of the corner of your eye and you will miss many that may be out of your line of vision at that moment in time. Maybe the best advice is to go to a completely open area, slightly raised, and lie on your back and look up, giving you the widest range of vision possible. That may not be possible for you, so just keep looking, for at least the next two weeks, if not longer. The current shower peaks around August 11th and 12th, so it is around then that you can expect to see most.

seinstein

thanx for the info Flukey......

Flukey

Given what we both saw was so bright and so low and the direction it was travelling was not originating from where Perseus was, it might actually have not been a Perseid meteor but in fact a fireball. This is a larger form of meteor, in simple terms.

seinstein

Yeah, i think you're right. As I think I said previously: It looked like a
'Nucleus' at the front of the tapering tail.
The nucleus was glowing just like a 'fireball'.
How exciting...:D...
I wasn't able to see the nucleus by following it with my eyes.
It was just when I saw it the image was sort of 'burned' into my eyes
for a few seconds so I could concentrate on that even though the event
had finished in less than 1/2 a second.
I don't know if I'm making sense as I sometimes confuse myself......


Can't wait to see more....:rolleyes:

thanx again for info....

Kevster

Hey,


I saw one (A shooting star) last night at about 2:30AM as I clambered into bed. It was my first time to see one but it only lasted a fraction of a second. If I didn't read this thread I don't think I'd have bothered looking out at the night sky, and therefore wouldn't have seen it.


Kevster

Flukey

Well keep looking, especially this week. We are getting near the peak of the Persieds, though the moon will make it harder to see some of the fainter ones, so it will not be as good as when there is no moon. You can see meteors at any time, just with a higher frequency during the various "showers" during the year. The current Perseids is just one of those. There are a variety of memteor showers each year. All occur at the same time each year, so this time next year the Perseids will again be happening. Others remaining to come this year include:

Orionids: October 16th - 26th
Leonids: November 15th - 19th
Geminids: December 7th - 15th

There are others earlier in the year. For all, the peak is the middle of the period. The Perseids are usually from July 25th to August 18th. Keep a lookout on sites like this for others. If you want to see other things, like satellites or the International Space Station(ISS), keep your eyes on the skies. The ISS passes over Ireland regularly. It will do so every night for about 2 weeks and then not again for a couple of months. It is like a large, slow moving, bright star. Like all satellites, it is seen by reflecting the sun's light, so it will appear to brighten and then fade and suddenly disappear.

If you ever see what looks like a slow moving star, that suddenly disappears, it is usually a satellite. Shortly after the sun goes down, while it is still not too far below the horizon, is the best time to see them. During the summer months, as the sun does not go too far below the horizon even at night, you can see more of them.

You can get times and dates, which are very accurate, as to when you can see the ISS by checking out www.heavens-above.com which has a lot of information on all that and more. All you have to do is register for free, put in your co-ordinates so it knows where you are, and it can give you localised information for what you can see from wherever you are. I've used it lots of times for its predictions as to when to see the ISS and it is always spot on. Good news and bad news: We are currently in one of those periods where it passes over Ireland, for about the next week. Unfortunately all the visible passes are between about 3am and 5am.

I just checked and as I type this, it is just off the north east coast of Brazil heading northeast across the Atlantic towards Africa and on towards south and then east Europe. Anyway, register with Heavens Above and use it for lots of other things. You will get opportunities to see the ISS again, so keep an eye on there for times. It is a very good website for anyone with even just a passing interest in astronomy. Astronomy is a great hobby. All you need to do to start it, is look up!

Flukey

I don't know about where you all are, but the skies are clear here in Dublin. This could be a good night to look up!

Flukey

It's not fully dark yet, but I've seen one already.

Flukey

After posting the above, I went outside. I got a deckchair, my planisphere, my book on the stars, my binoculars and a penlight and sat down. I faced Perseus, with Cassiopeia prominent and there I waited. I didn't see many meteors but I did see a few. What I saw were a lot of were satellites. Looking like moving stars, making their way across the sky, I must have seen over a dozen. With my binoculars I scanned the sky and looked more carefully at a few constellations.

Later I fixed my attention on Andromeda. I tried to find M31, its famous galaxy. With the help of my book I located what appeared to be a dusty or mist patch in the constellation. I had found it. I then went and got my telescope and set it up to get a closer look. It was a little clearer, but not a lot.

Tonight was clear and good for viewing satellites and of course meteors, along with all the constellations on view. There should be some more clear nights coming, so get out there!

seinstein

yeah i've seen satellites too, they're quite annoying 'cause they distract
me and i lose my place in the sky.
I was looking forward to looking tonight but i'ts miserable weather here
in Dublin.
Guess i'll have to be patient.
Oh, and if any1 else sees a good one tonight you had better not post
the info here or I'll track u down and stab you in a jealous rage....lol:mad:

Snowbie

Flukey wrote:

After posting the above, I went outside. I got a deckchair, my planisphere, my book on the stars, my binoculars and a penlight and sat down. I faced Perseus, with Cassiopeia prominent and there I waited. I didn't see many meteors but I did see a few. What I saw were a lot of were satellites. Looking like moving stars, making their way across the sky, I must have seen over a dozen. With my binoculars I scanned the sky and looked more carefully at a few constellations.

Later I fixed my attention on Andromeda. I tried to find M31, its famous galaxy. With the help of my book I located what appeared to be a dusty or mist patch in the constellation. I had found it. I then went and got my telescope and set it up to get a closer look. It was a little clearer, but not a lot.

Tonight was clear and good for viewing satellites and of course meteors, along with all the constellations on view. There should be some more clear nights coming, so get out there!

Flukey you missed a fireball around 3.50am,(well thats past most peoples bedtime but hey im on two weeks hols).
It left a trail behind it any obviously sped up as it closed in on the upper atmosphere.
Have not seen one like this in donkeys and was spectacular.
Went from east to west and finished up in Pegasus.

My specific area of interest is Meterology with Astronomy next as i too use to have a telescope and got many a cold or flu watching the night sky.
Unfortunately weather obscured tonight but conditions will improve later this week.Hope to get a good glimpse of the perseids this weekend.
Will be back with more updates for the weather for ye.

Flukey

It would have been nice to have seen that fireball, but as I said above, I saw one last week. That was worth seeing. I'd love to see more, but that one will do me for a while.

Grim_Reaper

I was up on Bettystown beach there a few weeks ago and as it's not too built up there the sky was so visible.. it was amazing! We saw at least 7 or 8 shooting stars in the space of probably one hour. There were so many stars visible out there- just goes to show how polluted the sky is in Dublin. It's a shame that we can't observe the beauty of the sky everywhere. It's disgusting looking at the brown-ish orange glow over us.

Astro1996

Grim_Reaper wrote:

It's disgusting looking at the brown-ish orange glow over us.

so true

Flukey

The one advantage of light-polluted skies is that it can make it easier to pick out certain objects as there aren't as many others to be seen. The primary stars stand out a lot clearer. Being away from the city to see a full sky is brilliant. No matter where you are though, as long as the clouds don't get in the way, there is always something to see.