Me and my friend were watching the meteor shower last night, when all of a sudden a white light with a blue trail burst from a little west of Mars and the star cluster that was near it. It travelled for about ten seconds across the sky and did a zigzag near the end where it just disappeared...
It was weird to say the least. We saw mainly 1 second meteors, but this was really long and put on quite a show.
2007-08-13 07:31:34 · 6 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
I live in St.John's, Newfoundland, Canada.
I'm glad that someone else saw it. Now I know that it wasn't a bird with a BLUE streak coming out of it's ***, like my friend claimed.
2007-08-13 07:38:01 · update #1
Most meteors are about the size of a grain of sand. These are the 1-second ones. Yours was probably a flattish, rough pebble. It took longer to burn up and, at the end of its flight, it may have broken up or discharged a smaller piece that caused it to change course as it disintegrated.
2007-08-13 07:40:16 · answer #1 · answered by Michael B 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The zig-zag may have been a result of an atmospheric disturbance. Various densities of the atmosphere can produce slightly refracted images. In the late evening, the atmosphere is full of turbulence, as the warm air gives way to colder air. The effect would be specially so nearer the horizon.
Sometimes Venus near the horizon can twirl a little, leaving some people not used to observing thinking it is a UFO.
What you saw was a larger piece of the Perseids. The larger the particle, the longer it takes to burn out.
Also, the length of the streak is dependent on the angle of the entry from your vantage point. If it is only 5 degrees to your line of sight, it will appear as a very short trail.
If it is 45 degrees to your line of sight, it will be a long streak.
I have seen a burst with no trail. This is rare, but is a meteor that is coming straight towards one's line of sight, and its trail is directly behind it.
2007-08-13 16:04:07 · answer #2 · answered by nick s 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's unusualy for a meteor to 'zig zag', but not unheard of. It was probably a slower-moving stone, and at the end it was moving slow enough that aero-dynamic forces changed it's vector. Occasionally, these can withstand the air friction & survive all the way to the ground.
I'm guessing, but since the other meteors which are part of the 'shower' all have about the same velocity, the stone you saw was probably not a part of it - just a rogue rock.
2007-08-13 15:05:46 · answer #3 · answered by quantumclaustrophobe 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
According to what I heard from TV. perseid meteor shower with that beautiful shooting stars appear best in northern hemisphere. and according to TV again, yesterday/last night appeared like 5 seconds only in Indonesia (country where i live). too bad, i missed it. i'm gonna catch it next year. it's gonna be a wonderful experience. i read, that on August there's some other meteor shower, not just the yearly perseid one. give any information for me, please!
2007-08-13 14:44:06 · answer #4 · answered by Tea Lover 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Was probably a larger meteor, (it may not have even been a Perseid) that broke up as it entered the atmosphere.
2007-08-13 14:44:29 · answer #5 · answered by Efnissien 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Hey! I saw the same thing, where do you live?
Dont know what it is, though
2007-08-13 14:37:13 · answer #6 · answered by The Gopher 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋