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[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

Rare Gamma Delphinid meteors after 83 years

11 June 2013

I wasn't even aware of this one, but a somewhat rare re-showing of the Gamma Delphinid meteors could be making a showing early Tuesday evening.

Not since 1930 has these meteors been seen and they are scheduled to slam into the Earth's atmosphere at about 2:00 am Tuesday morning....or not.

From Alan Boyle's "Cosmic Log"...

The Gamma Delphinid meteor shower hasn't made a splash since 1930 — but astronomers say this just might be another big year for the outburst, due to Earth's changing orbital path.
If the outburst comes, it's expected to last for about a half-hour starting at 4:28 a.m. ET Tuesday, according to Peter Jenniskens and Esko Lyytinen, who specialize in comets and meteor tracking. That would be prime viewing time for observers in the Americas and points as far west as Hawaii. But don't get your hopes up too high.
"No one knows the strength of this display, or whether it will occur at all," Robert Lunsford of the American Meteor Society says in his preview.

On the evening of June 11, 1930, observers reported seeing a flurry of meteor activity even amid the glare of the full moon — but there's not been a repeat of the display since. That led some experts to question whether the original reports were authentic. Jenniskens and Lyytinen think that they were, and they have determined that our planet should be going through the same region of its orbit on Tuesday. If a long-period comet left behind the type of cosmic grit that sparks shooting stars in the upper atmosphere, we should be seeing a similar display this June 11.

The meteors would appear to radiate from the double-star gamma Delphini, which will be high in the southern sky for East Coast observers around 4:30 a.m. Lunsford advises beginning your night's watch a couple of hours before that, just in case the outburst comes early.

cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/06/10/18885962-watch-for-the-comeback-of-gamma-delphinid-meteors-after-83-years?lite

The skies will clear nicely tonight and if up at 2:00 am...it may be worth it...or not.

Don't know unless you try.

[Paulie pchris00]

For the record, Gamma Delphinus is a nice double star, Albireo-like but dimmer. Meteor shower or not, the Dolphin's nose is worth a look.

[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

While researching this post, I did discover of the binary system.

Can't say I have ever purposely targeted this, but it is well worth slewing to next time out.

[Paulie pchris00]

The Dolphin is rather dim, but even in Chicago skies, easily visible with binoculars or a wide field finder scope. The dolphin asterism is small, so it's easy to identify with a wide field, low magnification view. The zero in on the nose for a dimmer version of Albireo. If I remember correctly, in the same field is an even dimmer double with similar colored stars. Worth a look, and I don't really get into double stars.