Andy Smith: > I'm trying to follow up a possible re-entry along the south > coast of England at roughly the above time. Coastguards put > it down to meteor showers, but the meteor observing community > discount this idea! Witness accounts mention several objects > glowing various colours. Does anyone have any information? > Could it have been related to the satellite collision a few > months ago? > > A BBC News report is here: > http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/8102331.stm A check of the Space Track web site did not reveal any possible decay candidates. The Herald Express newspaper quotes a member of the Torbay Astronomical Society, who believes it was a green flash: http://www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk/news/Meteor-shower-rare-green-flash-sighting/a rticle-1083282-detail/article.html <<<< It was logged as a meteor shower, but Ian Walsh, of the Torbay Astronomical Society, said: "Whatever it was, it was not one of the regular meteor showers. "Given the time of the reports I don't believe it was meteors at all. "There would have been so much light in the sky around sunset no one would be able to see meteors. "I believe it is what is called the 'green flash', an atmospheric effect which is supposed to be a flash of green light across the sky as the sun sets. "From the information I have been given this sounds about right." >>>> The article also quotes from the following paper on the green flash phenomenon by Dr. Mike Dworetsky, Senior Lecturer in Astronomy, at the University College London and Director of the University of London Observatory: http://zuserver2.star.ucl.ac.uk/~mmd/greenfla.html "it is regrettably more difficult, though far from impossible, to see the green flash from Britain. The best time to try is on a very clear day from a sea-side location with a clear view of the setting Sun" Are there many places along the northern shore of the Channel that provide a clear view of the setting sun? There is more on green flashes here: http://mintaka.sdsu.edu/GF/explain/explanations.html Ted Molczan ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe/Unsubscribe info, Frequently Asked Questions, SeeSat-L archive: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/seesatindex.html
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