Leonid Report

[Tom Droege <tdroege2@earthlink.net>]

Jennifer and I bundled up in our overcoats and sat up on the deck to watch 
the Leoinds.  In 20 years this is the most successful watch yet.  We saw 
1-2 per minute during peak times.

I turned on the tass telescope TOM1 and took images from the time we got up 
(about 4 am) till dawn.

It was pointed at near zero declination and programmed to step up in 
declination from -2 to +2.  During the evening I took 39 sixty-second 
exposures.  I found meteors on 4 of them but one is suspect.  Location of 
telescope, Batavia, IL, N41:49.598, W88:18.786

Times of observation (somewhere in the 60 second exposure with the 
indicated starting time)
10:29:47
10:34:16
10:46:20
11:22:24

The 11:24 observation is suspect.  It is also the brightest.  In fact it 
streaked across the frame and ended.  As it neared the end it got brighter 
and spiraled.  Possibly it was a piece of space junk burning up.  While all 
the others went from NE to SW on the images, this on went pretty much E to 
slightly N of West.

  Image area is 4.2 x 4.2 degrees.  Exposure is 60 seconds.  Number of 
Exposures 39.  This gives 41277.6 square degree seconds of exposure.  With 
3 hits, this is 0.26 hits per square degree per hour.   If we assume an 
observers field of view at 4000 square degrees, then this works out to 17 
per minute.  But the tass telescopes no doubt see many that we cannot 
see.  At least not me since I have a macular degeneration problem.  (Eats 
lots of spinach, take Fish Oil, and eat carrots,corn and other colored 
vegetables and there is hope that you can stabilize this condition when it 
is diagnosed.  Works for me.)

Tom Droege

PS.  If anyone is interested in the raw data let me know soon as I do not 
intend to save it.