Space Weather News for Oct. 8, 2010   
   http://spaceweather.com   
       
   DRACONID METEORS: Every year around Oct. 8th, Earth passes through a minefield   
   of dusty debris from Comet Giacobini-Zinner, source of the annual Draconid   
   meteor shower. This year, forecasters expect Earth to narrowly miss several of   
   the debris streams, resulting in no appreciable display for 2010. Next year,   
   however, could be different. On Oct. 8, 2011, Earth will have a nearly head-on   
   collision with a tendril of dust, setting off a strong outburst of as many as   
   750 meteors per hour.  One year from now, sky watchers could see the strongest   
   meteor shower since the Leonid storms a decade ago. Mark your calendar and,   
   meanwhile, follow the links at http://spaceweather.com for more information.   
       
   COMET HARTLEY 2 UPDATE:  Comet 103P/Hartley 2 continues to approach Earth for   
   an 11-million-mile close encounter on Oct. 20th.  It is not yet visible to the   
   unaided eye, but amateur astronomers are finding it easily using backyard   
   telescopes.  The comet's vivid green atmosphere now subtends an angle equal to   
   some of the biggest craters and seas on the Moon.  Visit http://   
   paceweather.com for sky maps and latest images.   
       
   THE COMET HUNTER:  Looking for the right optics to observe Comet Hartley 2? We   
   recommend the David H. Levy Comet Hunter: http://explorescientif   
   c.com/davidlevycomethunter/index.html   
       
       
   Regards,   
       
   Roger   
      
   --- D'Bridge 3.55   
    * Origin: NCS BBS (1:3828/7)