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DNS FOG Temp: 33 °F Wind: WNW at 4 mph Sunday, December 8, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend November 17, 2002 Comet makes way for meteor show A flurry of meteors will litter the night sky on Monday and Tuesday By BILL KETTLER Mail Tribune Rogue Valley skywatchers will be hoping for cloudless skies Monday evening when a spectacular meteor shower lights up the sky. Some local astronomy buffs may even visit eastern Oregon to improve their chances of seeing the Leonid meteor shower. "I’m thinking about going over to Lakeview," said Gary Sprague, astronomy teacher at North Medford High School. "I’m going to wait and see what the weather does." Meteors will streak across the sky in two distinct flurries as the Earth passes through debris left in space by the comet Tempel-Tuttle. The sheer volume of meteors — 500 to 700 per hour around 8:30 p.m. and as many as 2,000 per hour around 2 a.m. Tuesday — will make it easy to see the show, said Mike Quilty of Central Point. "With as many as there are supposed to be, you’ll be hard-pressed to miss them when they start," said Quilty, president of Southern Oregon Skywatchers. Forecasters were expecting partly cloudy skies Monday and early Tuesday with a chance of rain. The Leonid meteor shower (named for the constellation Leo) occurs every year in mid-November, when the Earth passes through debris trails left by the comet in its travels through space. Every 33.18 years Tempel-Tuttle passes close to the Earth’s orbit (as it did in 1998), leaving a more consolidated trail of rubble. This year, the Earth will collide with two of those debris clouds — the first, at around 8:30 p.m. on Monday; the second, at around 2:30 a.m. on Tuesday. A nearly full moon will reduce the number of visible meteors by a factor of between two and five, but the sheer volume of shooting stars should still make for a remarkable show, said Jim Todd, planetarium manager at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry in Portland. "Though the moon will be full, it will drop low in the sky by the time the meteor shower hits its peak at 2:30 a.m.," Todd said. Quilty said some of the Leonid meteors he saw last year were surprisingly brilliant. "I was looking down at my telescope adjusting something," he said, and I noticed a shadow at my feet. I looked up and there was one streaking across the sky that left a blue-green tube of ionized gas and cast a shadow." The meteors generally will seem to come from the quadrant of the sky that stretches from northwest to northeast. Quilty said any dark place away from city lights will make for good meteor watching, but the show will be better at high places such as Howard Prairie Lake east of Ashland. "Look in the dark part of the sky and you’ll see ‘em," he said. Todd said sky watchers who stroll outside and look up for a few minutes expecting to see a show will probably be disappointed because many of the meteors will be tiny. "Your eyes need time to adjust to the dark," he said. "Your neck muscles will also tire quickly." He suggested settling down in a comfortable lounge chair with plenty of warm clothes. "Be patient," he said. "You will be rewarded." Quilty agreed. "Take a warm blanket or a sleeping bag, something warm to drink, and someone to share it with," he said, "and have a good time." Reach reporter Bill Kettler at 776-4492, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy webmaster feedback A D V E R T I S E R S