Here is a detailed report on my one hour ETA session from up on the “meteor roof” of my home in St. Augustine, Florida USA this morning.
May 3/4, 2016, Observer: Paul Jones, Location 5 miles southwest of St. Augustine, Florida, USA, Lat: 29 degrees 89 minutes North, Long: 81 degrees 30 minutes West
0410- 0510 EDT (0810 – 0910 UT) Teff: 1.0 hour, No breaks LM: 6.0, Clear, Facing: South
8 ETA: 0, +2, +3(3), +4(2). +5(1)
1 ELY: +4
1 ANT: -1
7 SPO: +1, +2, +3(3), +4(1), +5(1)
17 total meteors
5 of the 8 ETAs left visible trains (strangely though, the zero mag ETA did not)
I had two ETAs in quick succession about 15 seconds apart no more than three minutes into the watch, then it took about 20 minutes for me to see another. As usual, most of the ETAs I saw were long-pathed and left nice trains. They looked like quick, glowing darts being thrown up into the sky from someone standing on the southeastern horizon. I love the ETAs for this visual effect that only they seem to be able to produce in quite this way.
The one eta Lyrid (ELY) was faint and short going south near the bottom of Lyra, it will be interesting to see how this little shower evolves over the course of the next few mornings and this minor radiant is an added bonus to ETA watches in early May.
The top meteor of the morning was by far the ANT! It started in Ophiuchus and slowly paced its way northeastward going all the way over to the NE edge of Cygnus. It glittered and sparked all along its path and left a thin train behind it. It alternately glowed gold, silvery white, yellow and orange during the almost five seconds I had it in sight. Not 30 seconds after that beauty finally ended, a nice +2 ETA popped going northwestward right over part of the track the ANT had just taken.
I must have seen about a dozen artificial satellites during the watch as well, going in just about every direction except east to west….;o).
It looks like we have a frontal system coming through our area today or early tomorrow that should sweep out the skies behind it and give us a few cool and clear nights for the maximum period. Hopefully, I can report for several more mornings.
Clear skies all, Paul Jones, St. Augustine, Florida, USA
Beautiful example of how an observation report should look like.
So I call to the active meteor observers to write about their experiences!
Thank you, Koen! It’s a labor of love for me and has been for over 40 years! Please do not hesitate to pass along to me any suggestions or thoughts for improvement on my reports. Going forward, whenever I get out and whatever I see, I will report it fully to Meteor News. Clear skies and many bright ETAs, Paul J in North Florida