Meteor Showers

[jimg (James)]

Hi,
Wanted to know about observing meteor showers some useful tips.

[JB80 (Jarrod)]

Meteor showers are relatively easy to view, you don't need need any visual aid like a telescope or binoculars just a comfy chair and look up in the rough direction of the radiant.
The radiant is the area of the sky the meteors seem to come from, for example the upcoming Leonids meteor shower will appear to come from the constellation of Leo. In truth you can see a meteor in all parts of the sky but looking towards the radiant is a good start.

The only other tips I can give is to try and get away from city lights for best viewing and to make sure you dress appropriately for cooler weather and some snack and coffee is always welcome. Beer if you are camping and not driving.
Some people lay on their backs to view so you may even want to take a blanket.

It is commonly said that watching from 12 to sunrise is the best time although some showers have predicted peak times, Leonids has two this year.

[Chif (Andrew)]

Originally Posted by JB80

Meteor showers are relatively easy to view, you don't need need any visual aid like a telescope or binoculars just a comfy chair and look up in the rough direction of the radiant.
The radiant is the area of the sky the meteors seem to come from, for example the upcoming Leonids meteor shower will appear to come from the constellation of Leo. In truth you can see a meteor in all parts of the sky but looking towards the radiant is a good start.

The only other tips I can give is to try and get away from city lights for best viewing and to make sure you dress appropriately for cooler weather and some snack and coffee is always welcome. Beer if you are camping and not driving.
Some people lay on their backs to view so you may even want to take a blanket.

It is commonly said that watching from 12 to sunrise is the best time although some showers have predicted peak times, Leonids has two this year.

awesome info

Is there a particular site people use around here so they know when meteor showers and other events are coming up?

[JB80 (Jarrod)]

For meteor showers I like to use http://www.imo.net/ it has lots of info and also deals with observations on the ground and a whole host of other things relating to the showers.
The "Shower Calendar" section is particularly useful for upcoming showers.

Sites like http://meteorshowersonline.com/index.html have loads of info on them too and I think http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essent...r-shower-guide is pretty good.

I have also found a good site for estimated peak rates and times of the peaks, lots of graphs and things not entirely easy to understand at first but they do at least summarize it in plain English for you.
http://feraj.narod.ru/Radiants/Predi...ds2012eng.html

I'm sure there are more good sites too and you need to remember that some sites speak in terms of US times for viewing, where possible take the UT(Universal Time) to then work out what your local timings are.

Hope that helps a bit and maybe others have more to add, maybe some good Aussie websites?

[Chif (Andrew)]

That's a great start, cheers Jarrod.

[goober (Doug)]

Deck chair facing the radiant.
Darkest skies possible.
Blankets and warm clothes.
Thermos.
Make sure the moon has set!

[Liz]

Hi James

.. this is a good site for anything astronomical, I check it every month, but has a section on meteors as well, for Australia.

http://home.mira.net/~reynella/skywatch/ssky.htm

[jimg (James)]

for the great replies and info on Meteor Showers. This is a great community online so many people willing to pass on info and help out.