The Leonids

Abstract

ATTENTION was first directed to this shower of meteors by Humboldt, who observed a great display at Cumana, Venezuela, on November 11, 1799. It was not, however, until the meteor ‘storm’ of 1833 that the shower was observed scientifically. The next return of the main swarm was observed in England in 1866 and in America in 1867. The period of about 33 years was now, by researches into records of past great ‘storms’, fully established. The next return, 1899, was eagerly awaited, but in the general excitement the work of Drs. Stoney and Downing was overlooked. They showed that planetary perturbations would probably deflect the richest portion of the stream so that it would escape encounter with the earth, and thus the recurrence of a great ‘storm’ was doubtful. The failure of the Leonids of 1899 has become historic, although good showers were seen in America in 1901 and in England in 1903. Observations have shown a steady increase of Leonid activity year by year in the few years up to 1931, giving hope of another ‘storm’ about 1933. The promise, however, was not fulfilled. Mr. A. King informs us that this year on November 15, about a day before the probable maximum, the Leonids were again very scarce. It therefore seems unlikely that there was any extraordinary display at that epoch. British observers generally experienced cloudy skies at that time, so that a definite statement cannot be made until reports from more favoured localities come in. Dr. S. C. Blacktin, 20 Denton Avenue, Roundhay, Leeds 8, has sent a report of a meteor seen at Leeds at 5.30 p.m. on November 16. This could not have been a Leonid, since the radiant at that time was 13° below the north-north-west horizon.