Abstract
WITH the return of the Leonid epoch we are naturally led to inquire as to the prospect immediately before us. The expectation of preceding years having been grievously disappointed, observers cannot help feeling very dubious as to the return of the meteors. This is accentuated by the fact that computations made under Dr. Downing's directions show that since their return in 1866 the denser part of the stream has been subject to considerable perturbation. At the middle of November 1899 the meteors probably passed about 1¼ millions of miles inside the earth's orbit, and therefore escaped a rencontre with the earth. At the ensuing approach the conditions appear even less favourable, for the calculations indicate that the swarm will pass us by at a point about 13/4 millions of miles nearer to the sun than the earth. There would seem therefore to be little chance of a rich display this year.
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DENNING, W. The Leonid Meteoric Shower . Nature 63, 39–40 (1900). https://doi.org/10.1038/063039b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/063039b0