Who can talk about the Leonid meteor shower?

Leonid meteor shower every year 1 14 to 2 1, especially 1 17 in October, some meteors will come out from generate in the direction of Leo, which is called Leonid meteor shower. Leonid meteor shower is caused by the existence of a star called Temple. Comet Tuttle.

This comet revolves around the sun, and at the same time, it constantly scatters its own substances. Just like spraying pesticides, it scatters many small particles in its orbit, but these small particles are not evenly distributed. Some places are sparse, while others are dense. When the earth meets thin particles, there will be fewer meteors, and when it meets dense places, there will be more meteors. These small particles are easily affected by various factors and slowly drift away, but when the comet returns, the earth will pass through the dense particle area it recently released. People on earth will see a large-scale meteor shower. The temple in March this year? Comet Tuttle returns again, so there will be a spectacular Leonid meteor shower in Leo this year or next year. Because of Temple? The period of Comet Tuttle is 33. 18 years, so the Leonid meteor shower is a typical periodic meteor shower with a period of about 33 years.

In 902, Chinese astronomers recorded the Leonid meteor shower for the first time (the ancient astronomical record of China);

1799, the famous German scientist Humboldt recorded this phenomenon in Venezuela.

1833, a rare star rain appeared in North America. It is estimated that 240,000 meteors broke through the sky in 9 hours.

1866 Comet Temple-tatar was discovered and its orbit was determined, and star showers were observed in Europe.

1899, the expected star rain did not appear, and the public's confidence in the reliability of astronomical calculation was shaken;

During the period of 1933, there was still no report of star rain.

1966, the spectacular "star rain" appeared again in the midwest of the United States. It is estimated that there are 654.38 million meteors falling from the sky every hour during the rush hour.

1998 Leonid meteor shower visited the earth again, which made most modern people truly realize this "king of popular rain".

History of Leonid Meteor Shower

As early as BC 1768, it was recorded in China and can also be found in historical materials of other countries. 1799, in South America, the Leonid meteor shower was described scientifically for the first time. 1833, the scale of meteor shower reached an alarming level. An American temple? Boston observer tuttle described it this way: "In June 1833 65438+ 10/2-13, an amazing scene appeared on the earth. Meteors light up the whole sky and thousands of "stars" fly in the sky. Just like snowflakes flying in the sky when it snows. " Scientists estimate that one can see at least 240,000 meteors in this 9-hour meteor shower.

Astronomers predict that there will be a magnificent meteor shower in 33 years, that is,1866165438+10. As expected, Europeans see 5000 meteor showers every hour, while North Americans see 1 000 times per hour due to moonlight interference, which is not as spectacular as 1 833. When people greeted the Leonid meteor shower of 1899 with anticipation, they ended in disappointment. 1932, people rekindled their hopes and failed again. People only see one meteor a minute. People who have been hit one after another no longer have any expectations for the Leonid meteor shower.

1966165438+1October 17 Miracle appeared. The Leonid meteor shower is back, and spectacular meteor showers can be seen everywhere in Arizona in the western United States. The number of meteors per hour exceeds 6.5438+million or even reaches 6.5438+0.4 million, lasting for 4 hours.

After the meteor in the Leonid meteor shower, there will be a short cloud-like trace in the sky, which is the meteor trail. Figure 7 shows the changing process of a bright Leo meteor and other meteors.

Fireballs (meteors with brightness over 3) are sometimes found in Leonid meteor showers.

The observation process of Leonid meteor shower in history is very interesting:

This meteor shower was observed in Europe and South America from 65438 to 0799. It was described by German explorer A.Humboldt.

1833.11.12 It is estimated that more than 240,000 meteors were observed on the east coast of North America within 9 hours.

1834 A radiant point was discovered in Leo, so it was named Leonid meteor shower. Olbers confirmed two occurrences of the same meteor cluster in Venezuela within two years, 1766 and 1799, with a period of 33.59 years. Astronomical circles began to understand and study the Leonid meteor shower.

Newton proved in 1864 that the Leonid meteor shower has been recorded since 902. * * * There are ten years, six of which are recorded in the official history books of China.

1866. 1 1 Leonid meteor shower reappears, and its motion orbit is calculated.

1867.11hautpoul gives the orbit of comet1866 Ⅰ, which is called the mother comet of the Leonid meteor group because it is very similar to the orbit of the Leonid meteor group.

1899 No Leonid meteor shower was observed, and neither were comets. Some people think that this comet has disintegrated. The public was very angry at being cheated, and their distrust of astronomers suddenly increased.

1 900.11.1516 Leonid meteor shower was observed again in Canada, with an hourly rate of10,000. In the second year, it was seen in the southwestern United States and Mexico, with a maximum of 2,000.

1933 No meteor shower was found. It is estimated that the comet may be broken.

Comet Temple-Tuttle, which disappeared for nearly a hundred years, was rediscovered in 1965.

1966. 1 17 Leonid meteor showers were observed again, with the maximum number exceeding 140000 per hour.