Leonids meteor shower

   November 18 , 2001 - Near North Bend, WA

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Despite the near-freezing temperatures & competing car stereos blaring bad rap music along the narrow moutain road we found, we ended up in a good viewing spot with clear skies for the show (lucky, considering how it had rained steadily all week). And although we didn't get the 4,000-an-hour meteor storm we had hoped for, we did spot many hundreds in the 2 hours we were there!

  1. Two Leonids through Orion
  2. A meteor originates at Orion's belt & disappears behind distant trees.
  3. Closeup of a fireball; inset, taken a few minutes later, the resultant smoke trail dissipates.

(Photo details: Minolta X-700, 50mm lens, Fuji Superia 800 film, various exposures).

EPILOGUE: Back home at 5:00 a.m., I stepped out onto my balcony for a moment before retiring—and even over the city lights, only 1/3 of the sky visible, I counted 6 bright meteors in 5 minutes.

   - Rob

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