From: Bill McCurdy <bmccurdy [at] telusplanet.net>
Date: 09/01/2007 23:26 PDT


Of all days for the weather to turn foul, it was the one of the eagerly-anticipated Aurigid outburst. But Alister Ling and I were determined not to let the opportunity  pass without a fight, especially as there was a decent chance we would define one limit of the observing network. We headed out of Edmonton at 11 p.m. MDT, to a thunderous accompaniment and showers of entirely the wrong sort. We drove through steady rain for two hours and through gradually thinning cloud for another two. Finally a star pierced through the cloud and my passenger window -- fittingly, it was Capella! A bright, dancing aurora then simultaneously entertained and concerned us as we passed the 55th parallel and finally pulled in to a campground at the previously unknown Sturgeon Lake, some 360 km northwest of Edmonton. To our shock, at that remote and unplanned spot we ran into the only other group of Edmontonians who were known to be chasing the shower -- Lance, Peter, and Zoltan. Those odds are long enough to give even Peter Jenniskens pause.  :)

   Alas, the spot turned out to be less than perfect, as the clouds seemed ever about to lift but never really did -- perhaps a standing wave? -- which limited our viewing to near the northern and western horizons and through broken clouds. My field of view was 30-70% obscured at all times, and the limiting magnitude was terrible, in the low 4s at best. (SQM reading of 17.8 at the time of the peak) Our "clearest" spot was partly occupied by the retreating, low level aurora. While those circumstances would limit the scientific value of a "normal" meteor report, that we saw as much as we did from our cloudy northern frontier was surely the tip of the iceberg of an impressive show.

   My plan was to begin watching early enough to establish a (low) background rate, then watch the display ramp up. Incoming heavy clouds nixed that idea, inducing a quick power nap and a profound impression of not much happening. Refreshed, I settled in to serious counting at 10:52 UT, 45 minutes before the predicted peak. In those minutes I observed 9 Aurigids, of which 6 were zeroeth magnitude or brighter. 8 of the 9 occurred in the quarter hour between 11:22 and 11:37. The last of these was observed at exactly the time of the putative peak, after which I experienced a remarkable drought of zero meteors for the entire rest of the night. While skies were brightening, the clouds were finally breaking up, and Capella was clearly visible for quite a while, so I was quite surprised to see no more meteors, esp. since there had been such a high percentage of bright ones earlier. I officially stopped counting after a further half hour, but continued to watch and saw nothing more except a magnificent golden eagle and a muted sunrise. I concluded the peak must have been a few minutes early, and while it was difficult to quantify how strong that peak had been, clearly there was enhanced activity over what might have been expected under such crummy conditions.

   With the presence of a second radiant within the borders of Auriga, the alphas were quickly dubbed the "Capellids", surely a more, uh, compelling appellation. They were impressively swift, with all other minor showers sluggish in comparison. Many Capellids were yellowish, although there was little in the way of persistent trains.

   While I am disappointed that our view of the show was as limited as it was, I am nonetheless pleased to have observed some evidence of this outburst from the margins of the visibility zone. My congratulations to Peter Jenniskens and crew for their accurate, and courageous, prediction of the 2007 Capellids!

   Kilometres: 725
   Gasoline: $72
   Total meteors: 12
   Feeling of satisfaction: priceless

   Bruce
   *****

Observer: Bruce McCurdy,  MCCBR
Location: Williamson campground boat launch, Sturgeon Lake (between Valleyview and Grande Prairie, AB)
55.082 deg. N., -117.556 deg. W.
Time: 2007 Sep 1, 10:52 - 12:07 UT
Method: visual, microcassette recorder and talking watch

Active radiants:
Sep. Ursae Minorids (SUM?) - 17:24 (261) +83
Antihelion (ANT) - 23:28 (352) -02 30 02:00 2 - 2 II
Alpha Aurigids (AUR)  05:36 (084) +42
66 AUR (66A)  07:24 (111) +39


10:52  start
10:57  AUR  -4  yellowish, brief train, visible through clouds
11:08  66A    0
11:21  SUM  +3
11:22  AUR  -2
11:22  AUR  -3  yellow, 1 second train
11:23  AUR  +2
11:23  SPO  -1  coppery,
11:31  AUR  -1 golden
11:31  AUR   0
11:33  AUR  +1 wide, brief train
11:36  AUR  +2
11:37  AUR   0
12:07  end

Teff = 1.25 hours
LM = 4.0 average
Obscuration = 40% average

SUM (1): +3
ANT: none
AUR (9): -4, -3, -2, -1, 0 (2), +1, +2 (2)
66A (1): 0
SPO (1): -1
Total meteors: twelve