Dec13/Dec 14 01 -
Close to 10:30 I went downstairs ( after packing my two watec902H
gears / batteries / voice recorder/talking clock etc) to check out the
sky. The sky looked promising. Two fireballs ( SPO) were seen during my walkabout and look around. Minutes later I ended up
lying on the park bench ( the same one I used for my full-moon leonids 2000). I patiently waited for the lights to go off (probably in the mind of the young couple on
the other side of the field) . Then the park lights switched off after a seemingly long delay 0:11am. I gained
additional 0.5 Mag or so improving my threshold of meteor detect ability.
Then my first Geminid shoot out from right branch of the TWINS - heading towards Procyon direction. Then a flurry of dim
fast Geminids appeared. I counted one - twO - thrEE - fOUR(doublets pair) - in arrival rate of less than 1 minute interval. I was debating
with myself -should I rush home to get the recording gear and risk the brief
outburst , or view the outburst and risk the possibility of recording some earlier. When the FIFTH slow short length white ball-headed
fireball appeared close to Castor - I rushed home, passing the now 'engaging' couple - I felt like alerting them to the good show 'up
above' but decided against it. I returned to the field some 10-15 minutes later. The couple was
gone. I then set up the
two video cameras on tripod. I went back to the bench nearby and started my visual patrol (0:56AM) trying to do voice recording and activating
the talking clock whenever I saw a meteor flashed by. It was HOME ALONE IV- I was alone in the foot-ball size park. A total of 13 meteors ( x2
SPOs) were collected in the less than 1-hr long. Sky gradually turned cloudy around 2:00am. No activity were seen from 1:30-2:00 ( the
count were from the first half of the 1:00am onwards) due to the loss in LM by cloud presence. The two cameras and recorders had work
flawlessly. I checked the two lens for dew by shining a light on it. Both showed evidence of the beginning of dew
formation ( I did bring my dew chaser kit
-Kendrick with me). If not for the lull and poorer sky I would have stayed behind.
Overall it was a GOOD show. Most of the meteors were white to slight yellow and relatively 'close' to radiant. ( unlike
Leonids where you can find it all over the sky). Only one Geminid left a visible 'wake' at 0132am.
Several were close by Jupiter. I slept for less than four hours and gone for work. ( What a
grueling day). A less than 40 minutes total of 12 Geminids in a casual watch. *( better than my 'guesstimate' 6 per hour
estimated from other GEMS report - choosing only the expected LM here ).
Video Tape/Voice recorder : The 89 degree watec-902 sysem had ALL the
entries matching the voice recorder entry. Even the narrower avenir lens (
25mm f0,95) bagged two meteors.
| Voice Recorder Transcribe |
|
# |
Time ( local) +8 GMT |
Remark* |
|
|
1 |
00:53 |
|
|
|
2 |
00:58 |
fireball |
|
|
3 |
01:03 |
Pleaides |
|
|
4 |
|
puppis, long trail |
|
|
5 |
|
across Procyon |
|
|
6 |
01:06 |
-2 fireball |
|
|
7 |
01:15 |
near Jupiter |
|
|
8 |
1:21 |
|
|
|
9 |
1:24 |
Canis Major |
|
|
10 |
1:25 |
yellow Castor/Pollux |
|
|
11 |
1:28 |
faint above Castor/Pollux |
|
|
12 |
1:32 |
leaving a wake |
|
|
13 |
1:43 |
Jupiter |
|
|
14 |
1:44 |
fireball |
* all were Gems |
|
|