Meteor Activity Outlook for September 25-October 1, 2010

September offers longer nights in the northern
hemisphere that tend to be less hazy than those experienced in mid-summer. In the
sky, no major showers are visible from either hemisphere but the northern
hemisphere enjoys the advantage of higher sporadic rates. Most of the shower
activity this month is produced from the Perseus-Aurigid complex active this time
of year. These showers rarely produce more than five meteors per hour but still
manage to produce most of the shower activity seen this month. Unfortunately the
Perseus-Aurigid complex lies too low in the northern sky for southern hemisphere
observers to view very well. Video studies have shown that the Southern Taurids
are visible as early as September 7th therefore after this date the Antihelion
radiant will no longer be listed until the Taurid showers end in December. The
Antihelion meteors are still active but their radiant is superimposed upon that
of the more numerous Taurids, therefore it is impossible to properly separate
these meteors. Observers in the southern hemisphere suffer from some of their
lowest rates of the year this month. The Southern Taurid radiant is not too badly
placed so observers south can expect to see a little of this activity this month.

During this period the moon reaches its last
quarter phase on Friday October 1st. At this time the moon will be located ninety
degrees west of the sun and will rise near 0100 for those located at mid-northern
latitudes. This weekend the waning gibbous moon will rise during the late evening
hours and will severely hamper any attempts to view meteor activity. The estimated
total hourly rates for evening observers this
week is near three from the northern hemisphere and one for observers south of the
equator. For morning observers the estimated total hourly rates should be near
eight from the northern hemisphere and four as seen from the southern hemisphere.
The actual rates will also depend on factors such as personal light and motion
perception, local weather conditions, alertness and experience in watching meteor
activity. Meteor rates are reduced this week due to severe interference from
moonlight.

The radiant (the area of the sky where meteors appear
to shoot from) positions and rates listed below are exact for Saturday night/Sunday
morning September 25/26. These positions do not change greatly day to day so the listed
coordinates may be used during this entire period. Most star atlases (available at
science stores and planetariums) will provide maps with grid lines of the celestial
coordinates so that you may find out exactly where these positions are located in
the sky. A planisphere or computer planetarium program is also useful in showing
the sky at any time of night on any date of the year. Activity from each radiant
is best seen when it is positioned highest in the sky, either due north or south
along the meridian, depending on your latitude. It must be remembered that meteor
activity is rarely seen at the radiant position. Rather they shoot outwards from
the radiant so it is best to center your field of view so that the radiant lies
at the edge and not the center. Viewing there will allow you to easily trace the
path of each meteor back to the radiant (if it is a shower member) or in another
direction if it is a sporadic. Meteor activity is not seen from radiants that are
located below the horizon. The positions below are listed in a west to east
manner in order of right ascension (celestial longitude). The positions listed
first are located further west therefore are accessible earlier in the night while
those listed further down the list rise later in the night.

The following showers are expected to be active this week. The detailed descriptions
will be continued next week when the moonlight is not as troublesome.