NEAR observed from Marina, CA

by Craig Cholar

I saw NEAR glint to about mag 2 (not the 0 to -1 predicted for the San Francisco bay area). It lasted from about 06:43:35 - 06:44:55 UT, +-5 sec. This was quite a bit longer than the 30 seconds predicted. I had tried to pick it up in my little 114mm newtonian before the glint, but couldn't do it. After the glint I tracked it for about 16 min. until it reached alpha Cass, where I lost it in some clouds. It was very dim after the glint, just at the edge of visiblity at 40x, except for a few seconds around 06:50 when it brightened just a bit.

Considering the weather we've been having in N. California lately, I count myself very lucky to have seen this. The only clouds I saw covered my northern horizons to about 25 degrees. It was dead calm, so I didn't even have to contend with the usual coastal winds.

A BIG thank-you to David Dunham who put it a massive amount of work on the flyby, and thanks also to all the others who helped make this very unique opportunity possible.

433 Eros or Bust!

Posted on sf-bay-tac Jan 22, 1998 23:45:39 PT
Converted by report.pm 1.2 Feb 20, 2005 15:27:51 PT