RE: decay

From: Ted Molczan (molczan@rogers.com)
Date: Sun Jun 27 2004 - 14:26:03 EDT

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    Floyd Weaver wrote:
    
    > 	I saw something, that appeared to be the reentry. I did 
    > not know that anything was due to reenter but while I was out 
    > looking at sats I saw something that looked to be a possible 
    > reentry. At about 2:55Z (or just
    > before) something in the north caught my attention. Blazing 
    > across the sky was multiple burning objects. When I first saw 
    > them they were near the north star and they continued toward 
    > the east, and disappeared due east. I was not paying close 
    > attention to time or position while I was watching such a 
    > sight but I think they may have been just above the north 
    > star when I first saw them and might have reached about 50 
    > degrees max elv. I'd estimate it took close to 15 seconds to 
    > go from the north to the east. The trajectory seemed to match 
    > 22273 but from the elset below it should have passed to my 
    > southwest about 75 degree elv. Since it was 5 minutes or so 
    > early that would have changed it.
    
    Allowing for the object's apprximately 7 min early arrival, I confirm that it
    tracked north of you, and passed above Polaris. There is no doubt that you
    observed the decay.
    
    
    > 	A notable characteristic of these fireballs was that 
    > they were not just bright objects trailing fire, but had a 
    > glow or haze around them. There also was not a lot of 
    > continuous bright fireballs. Its not the easiest to make a 
    > picture with words but it was not like the bright sharp 
    > meteors with thin trails.
    
    I suspect the haze and thin trails are plasma, as seen during space shuttle
    entries. It was quite evident during the decay of Raduga 33.
    
    Ted Molczan
    
    
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