by Phil Chambers
I left for Coe about 3:30 last night. Changed plans at East Dunne turnoff as I could see the clouds were following me from San Jose. Choices were Pacheco area or FP.
Decided on FP. I got the last place to park in the SW lot. (had to ask a guy to move his car over a few inches).
Set up to do some observing with the 5in Mak on the GP. I found Alan Z. there. Later Bob Baldwin showed up and later still, Jeff Crilly and his wife showed up. Those were the only folks I knew that I saw and I made a walking tour on Coulter Row looking for TACos. On coulter row was the largest "tube" dob I have ever seen. It looked to be 20 or 22. Looked like a massive cannon. I remember Paul Lefevre's run-in with his little dob. If he had this thing set up, he would still be in jail. LOL
Observing was pretty short lived as the high clouds were blocking most of the sky, encroaching from the West and North. By midnight, we were pretty well covered and a couple of cars left. I was considering doing the same and going East when Bob and Jeff arrived noting they had been in the Pacheco area and it was socked in by fog.
Magically, however, at between midnight and 12:30, the sky cleared so well that the double cluster and M31 were unaided eye. The seeing steadied and Saturn and Jupiter were gorgeous.
We had noticed a lack of meteors up to about 12 except for a few sporadics.
Well, after 12:30 you can duplicate the report from Paul Sterngold. They were everywhere and continued past 3:30 when it had quieted down some and I packed up. The first two I saw streamed a great trail across 80% of the sky through Orion.
There was a fellow next to us keeping an "official" count. It got up to over 2000 per hour based on half hour counts. However, if you were looking a different direction, the view was the same. At one point it looked like a waterfall into the monterey bay.
The most memorable ones were the first two, one that "connected the dots" on one side of the big dipper, and a short one overhead that destroyed your night vision.
WOW
On the way home at 5am I still saw some through the windows of the truck.
I attempted to take some pictures but if you dont hear about this again, you will know how that went. The lot was full of folks enjoying the show with white flashlights, starting cars to warm themselves with interior lights and opening doors to get goodies and coffee that were inside.
It was OK, though. I am glad they got out to see it because I consider each one of those folks "might" think a little about what is up there besides the light pollution that we so haphazardly employ without thinking.
It was a wonderful night but has probably spoiled me for future meteor showers.
The road back was essentially one lane because the people so overfilled everything that they just started parking on one side of the road for 2 or 3 miles. I saw one guy in a chair behind his car, wrapped up with head flopped over, obviously asleep. He didnt awake as I drove by so he is probably still there, asleep. Across the road from him was a -very- large wild pig. I have been wondering if that pig crossed over and gave him a rude awakening. <g>.
The amazing thing to me was how full the freeway was at 4am. A lot of folks were out last night.