Meteors

Abstract

I HAVE to record a brilliant series of meteors seen last night (Sunday, July 20) by myself and others. I will describe that seen by myself, as, amid the many splendid meteors I have observed during my sixty years of life, I have never seen one more magnificent. I was walking up and down my “quarterdeck,” the carriage-drive in front of my house, which faces due north and south, admiring the glorious tints of the dying day, for we have been having, on a reduced scale, the grand sunsets about which I have already written. I was looking due north, and saw a huge fireball suddenly appear about half way between the horizon and the zenith. It moved slowly and horizontally, leaving a broad trail of red light behind it, as well defined as that emitted by a rocket. The meteor itself was about half the size of a full moon, white, and of the most intense and dazzling brilliancy. It travelled so slowly that I had time to call out, several times, to my wife, “Look at that glorious meteor,” and she had time to turn round and see it. At about north-north-west it suddenly broke up into six, if not seven pieces, but at this moment its light was so intense that I could not be quite certain; six, however, I counted distinctly. They did not fall, but trailed on in a line after the larger mass, which did not seem diminished by the rupture, and finally, at north-west, they all disappeared. On taking out my watch I found it was just two minutes past six, and as we are a month past our shortest day, you can fancy there was plenty of daylight left to dim its splendour. But it was a magnificent sight, and its intense brilliancy surpassed anything I have seen before.