Leonids go unnoticed for most of the year. However, they make an impression every 33 years as the Earth moves into more dense dust clouds from the original comet Temple-Dutt.
As Alexander von Humboldt saw from Venezuela in 1799, the last time there was a heavenly scene was in 2001. “Thousands of fireballs and falling stars fell one after the other for four hours. Every second there was not a single piece in the sky full of fireballs and falling stars.”
The whole sky seemed to move
Humboldt did not exaggerate: even with the meteor storm 20 years ago, the whole sky seemed to be in motion – thousands of shooting stars fell every hour. “Fireballs exploded. Behind the biggest left bright, wide lines.”
Some meteorites in the Leonidenster are as bright as the full moon, so objects cast shadows on their light. Others leave smoke hanging in the atmosphere for a few minutes. “Fireballs and falling stars are gradually becoming rarer. A quarter of an hour after sunrise, you can recognize many more by their white light and the speed at which they drove there.”
There will be another Humboldt fireworks display in thirteen years. There are only a few Leonids this week.
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