Quote:
Originally Posted by Tony_
Apparently it has happened before and here is an explanation from APOD:
Explanation: Did this meteor leave a twisting path? Evidently. Meteor trains that twist noticeably are rare - and even more rarely photographed - but have been noted before. The underlying reason for unusual meteor trains is that many meteors are markedly non-spherical in shape and non-uniform in composition. Meteors, usually sand sized grains that originate in comets, will disintegrate as they enter the Earth's atmosphere. Non-uniform meteors may evaporate more on one side than another. This may cause a rotating meteor to wobble slightly in its path, and also to spray fast moving debris in a nearly spiral path. The fast moving meteor debris ionizes molecules in the Earth's atmosphere that subsequently glow when they reacquire electrons. Surely no meteor is perfectly uniform and spherical, so that a slight swagger that is below perceptibility is likely typical. Meteors may well have seeded Earth with the prebiotic molecules that allowed for the development of life. |
Thanks for that Tony.
I've checked the image details and it was a 30 sec exposure at ISO 4000, so any bump would have captured movement in the brighter stars in the image for sure.
It's quite exciting really, to think that I may have captured something that not many people have managed to.
I am convinced that it is real movement of the meteor, and what you and speach have suggested certainly seems to be the best explanation that I have heard or read about to date.
Thanks again
Bob