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Apart from debating “Whatever did the Romans do for us…” and the varied comments about the artwork, I agree that it’s great to see astronomy on the new stamps.
If it encourages some youngsters to take an interest in our fascinating hobby / science it will all be worthwhile.
Alex.
“He’s not an astronomer, he’s a very naughty boy…!”
Well, in my astronomical library Messrs Bone, Moore, Sidgwick et al write about aurorae, novae, and supernovae, so after decades of such usage it now grates on my ears to attend talks about ‘auroras’, etc.
I’ll say tomato…
Alex.
American media inform us that Betelgeuse is ‘fainting’, so perhaps we need some interstellar smelling salts to help it recover from its current swoon…
Hi Colin,
That’s a really nice set of radio data. During that time there is only a low level of activity from minor showers, and the ever-present sporadics, so we can assume the plots give a good approximation of Quadrantid rates.
The NEMETODE peak of 04:45 UT was derived from combining several years’ data and the individual years will have profiles that are affected by sub-peaks, brief drops in meteor flux, etc. The peaks suggested by the IMO and the BAA Handbook Meteor Diary were based on slightly later solar longitudes. The maxima derived from visual, video, radio and professional radar systems can differ in time because they can be detecting meteors from different sized meteoroid bodies and particle-sorting takes place in the stream, etc.
In some cases a bright meteor seen visually won’t have been detected on radio, and a very good radio trace wasn’t picked up by video cameras. I guess these are examples of optimal / non-optimal radio detection alignments.
We had awful conditions for visual and video work this week, so I’ll ask our radio observers to have a look at your extensive coverage.
I’m surprised we aren’t a nation of radio astronomers.
Alex.
Hi Peter,
I’m pleased that your efforts were rewarded with a good number of Quadrantid meteors. I’m sure the Meteor Section would be pleased to receive a formal report even though you observed under difficult conditions where the limiting mag and sky clarity varied so much.
Cheers,
Alex.
The two lectures and the Sky Notes were excellent presentations and the location is most convenient, adjacent to Kings Cross station.One constructive comment – the bright spotlights directed both onto the audience and the display screens detracted somewhat from my enjoyment of the talks, washing out some of the rich colours in the graphics and diluting the fine details in members’ astro images. The YouTube recording is clearer in this respect.Clear skies,Alex.Hi Jeremy,
I have seen some videos from balloon-borne meteor cameras – perhaps not from this group – and the mount wasn’t stabilised, so it spun around at a considerable rate, making the viewer (and analyst) feel seasick. 🙁 It’s certainly one way to get above this interminable cloud and rain.
Perhaps I could collect some Christmas Party helium balloons and attached a video camera…
Clear (and dry) skies,
Alex.
Hi John, Colin,
Nice work.
Your radio detections agree with reports received by the IMO of enhanced rates from around 04:40 to 05:20 UT. Visual observers saw small numbers of AMOs, so this year’s return certainly didn’t produce a meteor storm for us. Valuable data, none the less.
Alex.
The minor shower alpha Monocerotids (IAU 246 AMO) normally produces low rates, but on Friday morning there’s a possibility of a brief period of enhanced activity (about 30 minutes) producing up to 400 meteors per minute.[Edit – I should have written that the brief burst of activity over a few minutes could equate to a ZHR of 400.]The attached sky plot shows the radiant of the AMOs, derived from NEMETODE data for 2012-2018. They appear from an area southeast of Procyon which is well placed for us in the early hours. Our multi-year data gives a radiant of RA 7h 49m, Dec +1.7 degrees and they are fast meteors; we logged them at a geocentric velocity (Vg) of 61 km/s.
The weather forecast for my location is not hopeful – the standard fodder of clouds and rain. 🙁 Please let us know if you record copious numbers of AMOs on video or DSLR cameras, and if radio observers encounter any increased activity in your detection plots.Clear skies,
Alex.
Hi Bill,
Correct, I should have written that the rate during the brief burst of activity could equate to a ZHR of 400.
As expected, I was sitting under a blanket of cloud and rain.
Alex.
Hi Derek,
A spectacular one!
I didn’t catch it on my cameras, but that’s expected because our fields don’t overlap. I’ve asked the NEMETODE group if any other stations recorded it.
Fingers crossed.
Alex.
Hi Bill,
Very nice results.
My Leeds_N camera was clouded out at that time, unfortunately. We’ll see if any other stations were successful and I’ll let you know.
Cheers,
Alex.
Hi Paul,
This problem has been quite a topic of conversation on this forum. Enter ‘condensation’ into the Search field and have a look at the discussions to see if they help you.
Good luck,
Alex.
Hi Bill,
Spectacular!
I replied last night that I was sitting under cloud, unfortunately. I’ve sent an e-mail to the NEMETODE group, so fingers crossed that at least one of the meteor video cameras covering Scotland will have recorded it.
Cheers,
Alex.
Clicking on ‘BAA Journal now available on line’ in the recent Newsletter takes you to the October Journal, and as you’ve remarked, it can now be accessed via the BAA Home page, etc.
Alex.
Hi,
The link on the BAA Home webpage which leads to Publications – Journal still shows the August issue as being the most recent.
The October 2019 issue is in Downloads – Journal Archive. I guess this is because the PDF of the current Journal is intentionally only available to Members, although it’s usually located in Publications – Journal where the contents are restricted for non-Members.
I haven’t located the 2020 Handbook yet. I’m sure it will turn up in due course.
Cheers,
Alex.
Hi David,
Several years ago the West Yorkshire Branch of the BCS organised a trip to Jodrell Bank which included a behind-the-scenes ICT guided tour by Ian Morison. He is a skilled presenter and educator and it was a great experience. I’m sure everyone attending his seminar will really enjoy it.
Clear skies,
Alex.
Thanks Andy, we’ll be in touch if any of the speakers give permission for their PDFs to be made available in that Members Download area.
Clear skies,
Alex.
Hi Dominic, Nick,
After each ESOP we ask the speakers for their permission to add the PDFs of their talks to the Symposium website. For the reasons you mentioned not all are able to do this and we fully respect their wishes. At Armagh Prof. Mark Bailey set the ball rolling by offering his PDF before he started his presentation.
Such contributions are a great resource for members, whether they attended the meeting or not.
Clear skies,
Alex.
