ALERT NEWSLETTER – July 2022

Hi everyone & an early Happy 4th of July!

I hope you are staying cool and hydrated as we wind our way towards the heat of Summer.

The biggest news around is that ALERT meetings at the NWS office have resumed!

So, if you haven’t been to a live ALERT meeting yet, bring your foot long COVID Beard and
join us!

Bring your wallet as you do, for the time has arrived for ALERT dues.

Join me as I dust off the wallet, shoo away the moths and cough up some dough, so we will remain current active members

If you can’t attend in person, I suggest visiting our blog at https://alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/Documents/alertapp.pdf for information on where to send the dues and also for the form if you are not a member and would like to join.

Until we meet again, everyone stay safe!

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Come On, Just It A Try!

It is a common scenario on TV shows and movies. Our hero, or victim, depending on the plot, is driving along a dusty road and steam begins billowing out from under the hood as the radiator hose ruptures and dumps its contents on a lonely stretch of Highway 224.

Reaching for the cellphone, it cheerfully says “no signal”, which is frustrating and somewhat mystifying since they passed a cell tower two miles back.

In the TV version our hero or victim to be, tries moving around or climbing a windmill tower and its still “no signal.” With nightfall approaching, he decides to leave his safe shelter, which is what his car is, leave no note of where he is heading, so that when the deputies find the car three hours later, which they will do, and would have found sooner, if he had raised the hood as a sign that “hey, I’m broken down”, they will have no clue where to look, but he does manage to leave behind that cooler by the blanket. You know the one. The one that is stuffed with food, ice cold water, soft drinks and the other makings for the sandwiches he was going to make while he tried to video elusive salamanders for his YouTube channel, enough to feed a horse for a week, and he leaves all this behind to wander cluelessly into parts unknown.

Our TV hero stumbles upon Aunt Gladys’s farm, who give him sweet tea, some of her famous nanner puddin’ (which you ought to try), and though she hasn’t had a telephone for years, she remembers that Uncle Otis was a “ham radio operator” and they pull a junker out of the basement, plug it in (minus any antenna) and either call “Crawdad Tracker” on Channel 19, since Hollywood doesn’t know the difference between ham and CB radio, or plops on some random weird frequency somewhere on the radio dial and says with authority “this is PU24XY95 with emergency traffic.”
And, as should be expected, someone who anxiously hovers over random weird frequencies somewhere on the radio dial answers “PU24XY95 this is BARF4U987, I’m going to autopatch you into the 911 center.” After all, isn’t that how it works?

Or our victim comes to a ram shackled house, lured by banjo music, and ends up being the main course for dinner.

But, maybe a better, real life solution in cases of needing help but, having “no signal” would be TRY IT ANYWAY!

If you have an emergency and you are in an area with no cell reception on your carrier, another carrier may have perfect coverage, though your phone does not “see it” and will say “no service”. If you go ahead and call 911, if any tower with any carrier hears your 911 call, it will automatically connect you to complete the emergency call.

This is true even if a phone has been deactivated and has no SIM card, per FCC requirements.

Also, even if your phone says, “no signal”, the cell tower might be “seeing” you phone, as it has a better receiver. So, akin to “broadcasting in the blind” an SOS or Mayday, dial 911 and even if you hear nothing, tell where you are (street/cross street, mile marker, etc.) and the nature of the emergency, repeating this three times. They might be hearing you, though you cannot hear them.

You will have nothing to lose and everything to gain if it works., so come on, just give it a try!

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FM DXing

In our April Newsletter we looked at the AM Broadcast band and examples of what stations you might be able to receive, depending on the time of day and the judicious use of a rabbit’s foot.

Next, we will take a peek at the most widely used of the three free over the air broadcast mediums – the FM Broadcast band. The FM band, which stretches from 88 to 108 MHz is a deceptively large band. It is 17 times as large as the AM Broadcast band and 5 times larger than the 144 – 148 MHz Two Meter Amateur band.

The US FM band consists of 300 channels spaced 200 kHz part. It is mainly for local and multicounty coverage, but on occasion the band will open up and distant stations will be received. The causes of these DX receptions are the same as with 2 Meters ham signal DX – tropospheric ducting caused by temperature inversions.

Springtime is the peak FM DX season, though it can occur in any season and usually occurs during the morning hours, as the Sun rises and heats the upper atmosphere, while the lower levels are still cool or cold. This temperature inversion will cause radio signals to travel dozens if not hundreds of miles. Assuming a stable non churning atmosphere, there will always be a morning temperature inversion, even in the Summer. Sometimes it is exceedingly weak and unnoticeable and sometimes it is very strong, lasting throughout the morning. Sometimes it is detectable on weather radar. If you are looking at the radar and the “ground clutter pattern” around the site blooms like a rose, you know you are seeing a band opening at 2700 – 3000 MHz or upper UHF. It is a good bet that the lower UHF frequencies of 440 & 900 MHz are opening also and very possibly the VHF realms also, which would cove 6 Meters, FM, 2 Meters and the neglected 220 MHz ham bands.

Also, there are the temperature inversions that can accompany cold fronts, as a cold front passes and undercuts the warmer air that it is replacing.

The farthest FM radio station I have ever received was a Public Radio station in Oklahoma near the bottom end of the band, having a fundraising telethon. I almost called them to tell them they were reaching Alabama, but, being a lily liver, much to my regret, I changed my mind.

Though I don’t consider myself a fossil quite yet (though some might disagree), I have seen the FM broadcasting evolve over the years.

One change which occurred concerns Birmingham TV station WBRC aka Fox6. The old NTSC mode of TV transmission was a very broad “composite signal”. The video portion or subcarrier was a broad band AM signal, with the FM audio subcarrier sitting on top of the channel. The old Channel 6 signal was next to the bottom of the FM Broadcast band, stretching from 82 to 88 MHz and anyone with an analog FM receiver could listen to WBRC’s audio on 87.75 MHz.

Listening to your favorite shows or news as you drove was fun, but when tornado warnings were issued, the capability became invaluable.

Two things killed this resource. The FCC mandated that by 2009 all full power TV stations switch to the current HDTV digital format, which is incompatible with FM receivers. Also, FM receivers started sporting digital tuners, rather than analog “dial type”, and these being incapable of tuning below 88 MHz, meant they could not receive the 87.75 MHz audio signal.

Many were angered by the loss of this resource. Some blamed the NWS , which has no control over what the broadcasters do, and some blamed the broadcasters who had no choice in the matter. Blame the FCC instead.

But, remembering how many are angered when normal programming is interrupted due to tornado warnings today, it just proves that broadcasters can’t win for losing.

To try to fill the gap, some FM stations simulcast the TV meteorologists if the warning is for their county. What is happening in the next county may or may not be covered depending on the station, their coverage area and target audience.

Another change I’ve seen is the large growth of stations on the band. In 1977 there were maybe a dozen FM stations in the Birmingham area. Now including primary stations and their relays or “translators” there are dozens.

“Translators” are relay stations that rebroadcast the primary stations signal, just as our repeaters do, to increase the stations footprint. Some translator’s signals are so pure that except for a millisecond delay you can’t tell it from its source, a few MHz up or down the band. Others may sound muffled, distorted or off frequency.

The translators present a major problem for FM DXers in that they occupy so many channels, that they don’t leave very many gaps for distant stations that may drift in, where in the past there were many.

One point worth mentioning is FM signals are much more location dependent than AM broadcast signals. On channels with weaker signals, you may hear on the same frequency one station on one side of town and another on the other side of town.

Then factor in FM’s characteristic “capture effect”, where, if two stations are present the stronger signal will literally take over your receiver, then you can have interesting situations.

For example, I was listening to one distant station which featured Christian programming talking about love and how “love conquers all” and suddenly another station switches in with someone rapping, using every lewd word in the book and a few not yet listed.

“I don’t recall St. Paul saying that” remarked to myself

Nearly everyone has a FM radio. Even if it is the one to the right of your steering wheel.

Take some time and cruise through the band and see what you can find. You might be surprised what you have been missing!

 

Radio Log
Spring 2022

MHz Channel Reception Details

87.9 200 Nil
88.1 201 WSJL- Bessemer, AL – Christian Talk
Momentary – Hip Hop with filthy language
Momentary – Spanish – Nonreligious
88.3 202 WJUV – Cullman, AL – Catholic – Guadalupe Radio
Momentary – Spanish Religious
Momentary – Classical
Momentary – Urban
88.5 203 WLJR – Birmingham, AL – Christian Radio
88.7 204 WELL – Waverly, AL – Christian Music
88.9 205 WMFT – Tuscaloosa, AL – Christian Radio – Moody Bible Institute
89.1 206 WDNX – Olive Hill, TN – Christian Radio
89.3 207 WLRH – Huntsville, AL – Public Radio
WPJN – Jemison, AL – Contemporary Christian Music
Bleed over from 89.5 – Christian Music – Family Radio
89.5 208 WBFR – Birmingham, AL – Christian Music – Family Radio
89.7 209 KRLE – Carbon Hill, AL – Christian Radio – K-Love
89.9 210 W210CA – Birmingham, AL – WBHJ-HD2 – Christian Music – WAY FM Network
90.1 211 Bleed over from 90.3
90.3 212 WBHM – Birmingham, AL – Public Radio
90.5 213 Bleed over from 90.3
90.7 214 Bleed over from 91.1
90.9 215 Bleed over from 91,1
91.1 216 WAJH – Birmingham, AL – Jazz Hall Radio
91.3 217 Bleed over from 91.1
Momentary – Religious
91.5 218 WUAL – Tuscaloosa, AL – Public Radio
Momentary – Religious
91.7 219 Bleed over from 91.9
91.9 220 WGIB – Birmingham, AL – Christian Radio
92.1 221 WKUL – Cullman, AL – Country Music & Talk
Momentary – Jazz
92.3 222 WLWI – Montgomery, AL – Country Music
92.5 223 WYDE – Cordova, AL – Christian Music
92.7 224 W224CK – Vestavia Hills, AL – Relay of WDXB-HD2 – Black Information
Network
92.9 225 WTUG – Tuscaloosa, AL – Rhythm & Blues
93.1 226 W226CT- Leeds, AL – Relay of WAYE AM – Regional Mexican
93.3 227 WPLX-LP – Pelham, AL – Greatest Hits 60s, 70, & 80s
WSYE – Houston, MS – Adult Contemporary
93.5 228 Nil
93.7 229 WDJC – Birmingham, AL – Christian Music
93.9 230 Nil
94.1 231 WJLD – Birmingham, AL – Urban Oldies & Blues
94.3 232 Momentary – Religious
Bleed over from 94.1 & 94.5
94.5 233 WJOX – Birmingham, AL – Sports Talk
94.7 Nil
94.9 234 WATV – Birmingham, AL – Urban Adult Contemporary – Rhythm & Blues
95.1 235 WXFX – Prattville, AL – Mainstream Rock
WYSF-LP – Birmingham, AL – Urban Contemporary, Reggae
95.3 236 WYDE – Birmingham, AL – Christian Music
95.5 237 Nil
95.7 238 WBHJ – Birmingham, AL – Urban Contemporary
95.9 239 Nil
96.1 240 W241AI – Gorgas, AL –Relay of WMJJ-HD3 – Christian Radio – K-Love
96.3 241 Nil
96.5 242 WMJJ – Birmingham, AL – Adult Contemporary
96.7 243 Nil
96.9 244 WRSA – Huntsville, AL – Adult Contemporary 80s & 90s
97.1 245 Nil
97.3 246 WPYA – Gardendale, AL – Top 40 & Pop
97.5 247 Nil
97.7 248 WRYD – Jemison, AL – Christian Rock
97.9 249 W262AR – Irondale, AL – Relay of WMMA – Catholic Radio
98.1 250 WTXT – Tuscaloosa, AL – Country Music
98.3 251 WAYE – Birmingham, AL – Regional Mexican La Jefa
98.5 252 Bleed over from 98.7
98.7 253 WBHK – Birmingham, AL – Urban Adult Contemporary
98.9 254 Bleed over from 98.7
99.1 255 W256CD – Fultondale, AL – WBHJ-HD2 – Christian
99.3 256 Bleed over from 99.1
99.5 257 WZRR – Birmingham, AL – News / Talk
99.7 258 Momentary – Rock
Momentary – Talk
99.9 259 WZAL-LP – Birmingham, AL – Classic Country
100.1 260 WAGG – Birmingham, AL – Urban Gospel
100.3 261 Bleed over from 100.1
100.5 262 WJOX – Birmingham, AL – Sports Talk
100.7 263 WCKF – Ashland, AL – Country Music
100.9 264 Momentary – Classic Rock
101.1 265 WXJC – Birmingham, AL – Christian
101.3 266 Momentary – Classic country
101.5 267 WQEM – Columbiana, AL – Simulcast of WGIM – Christian Radio
W268BM – Jasper, AL – Relay WJLX AM – Country Music
101.7 268 WQRR – Reform, AL – Alternative Rock
101.9 269 WHHY – Montgomery – Contemporary Top 40
102.1 270 W271BN – Birmingham, AL – WZZK-HD2 – Christian Music – Air1
102.3 271 Nil
102.5 272 WDXB – Birmingham, AL – Country Music
102.7 273 Nil
102.9 274 WFMA – Marion, AL – Contemporary Christian Music
103.1 275 W276BQ – Birmingham, AL – WQEN-HD2 – Alternative Rock
103.3 276 W277DM – Jasper, AL – Relay of WIXI relaying WJLD
103.5 277 Nil
103.7 278 WQEN – Trussville, AL – Contemporary Top 40
103.9 279 Nil
104.1 280 W281AB – Mountain Brook, AL – WMJJ-HD2 – Relay of WJLD
104.3 281 Bleed over 104.7
104.5 282 Nil
104.7 283 WZZK – Birmingham, AL – Country
104.9 284 Nil
105.1 285 W286BK – Birmingham, AL – WERC-HD2 – Christian Music
105.3 286 Nil
105.5 287 WERC – Birmingham, AL – News Talk
105.7 288 Nil
105.9 289 WRTR – Tuscaloosa, AL – News Talk
106.1 290 W291DC – Birmingham, AL – Relay of WBHM – Public Radio
106.3 291 W292EI – Warrior, AL – WBHJ-HD2 – Christian Music – WAY FM Network
106.5 292 W293CM – Graysville, AL – WERC-HD3 – Christian Music K-Love
106.7 293 Bleed over 106.9
106.9 294 WBTP – Birmingham, AL – Classic Rock
107.1 295 Bleed over 106.9
107.3 296 W297BF – Birmingham, AL – WPYA-HD2 – Alternative Rock
107.5 297 Bleed over 107.7
107.7 298 WUHT – Birmingham, AL – Urban Adult Contemporary
107.9 299 Bleed over 107.7

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Mark’s Almanac

Originally called “Quintilis”, the fifth Roman month, Quintilis was renamed “July” in 44 BC in honor of Julius Caesar.
July is miserably hot, as land temperatures reach their peaks in late July through early August – the Dog Days of Summer.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac lists the traditional period of the Dog Days as the 40 days beginning July 3 and ending August 11.

The Romans on the other hand said that the Dog Days ran from July 24 through August 24, or, alternatively, from July 23 through August 23, coinciding with the Sun and the Dog Star Sirius rising at the same time & their combined heat supposedly adding to the summer misery.

As you endure this heat, remember to drink lots of fluids, hug the shade & avoid the afternoon sun.

Also please resist the temptation to take Fido for a walk during the heat of the day. Remember that the “official” temperature readings are taken 6 feet above ground level. It’s much, much hotter on the ground where Fido & Puss must walk with bare paws, where it could easily be 150 degrees.

Before taking Muttley for a walk, place your hand on the pavement and see how hot it is. If it’s miserable to you, it will be miserable to him also. Just walk him in the morning or wait until the sun is setting and it cools off to a tolerable level and try to stick to grassy areas. Then go have a good time together.

The last week of July is usually the hottest week of the year. Tropical conditions are dominant, with conditions similar to that of the Amazon Valley.

This is the time to test the “Brown Grass Theory”. According to this theory, if the grass remains green the temperature will probably not reach 100, but, if the grass turns brown, get set for triple digits. This is a local Birmingham rule, which the Old Timers at the Birmingham NWS, such as Frank Makosky and J.B Elliott used for years.

In July the least rainfall falls in the Northern Hemisphere.

Tornado activity drops sharply, with a 47% decrease nationwide. July has an average of 103 tornadoes.

Hurricane activity increases, but major hurricanes are not yet frequent. By months end, one hurricane will have occurred. Seven percent of a year’s hurricane total occurs in July.

July Tropical Cyclone Breeding Grounds

Long track hurricanes are possible, forming off the African coast and crossing the Atlantic, either to threaten the US East Coast, then eventually veering off towards Bermuda. Or in the case of “Low Latitude” storms, cross the Atlantic, strike the Leeward Islands; enter the Caribbean and then striking the Yucatan, or the Western or Northern Gulf coast.

From 1851 to 2021 there have been 128 Tropical Storms and 61 Hurricanes, 29 of which made landfall in the United States.

Among notable storms are 2005’s Hurricane Emily, the only Category 5 storm to form in July, reaching 160 MPH and striking Mexico.

Hurricane Bertha, a 125 MPH storm holds the record for the longest lifespan for a July hurricane, churning for 17 days.

Days grow shorter as the Sun’s angle above the noonday horizon decreases from 79.6 degrees at the beginning of the month to 74.7 degrees at the month’s end. Daylight decreases from 14 hours 20 minutes on July 1 to 13 hours 49 minutes on July 31.

Sunrise and sunset times for Birmingham are:

July 1 Sunrise 5:41 AM Sunset 8:01 PM
July 15 Sunrise 5:48 AM Sunset 7:58 PM
July 31 Sunrise 5:59 AM Sunset 7:48 PM

Looking skyward, the Sun, magnitude -26.7 is in Gemini.

At the beginning of the month Mercury, magnitude -0.3 in Taurus The Bull, is low in the glow of sunrise, 10° to 13° to the lower left of Venus.

He rises at 4:19 CDT, 1 hour and 17 minutes before dawn.

He sinks a little lower into the sunrise day by day but brightens from magnitude –0.3 to –0.8. He will then slide into the sunrise and pass directly behind the Sun in “Superior Conjunction” on July 16.

Venus, the brilliant “Morning Star, shines at magnitude -3.9 in Taurus The Bull. She rises 2 hours before the Sun. Look for her above the east-northeast horizon, very far lower left of bright Jupiter, by roughly six fists at arm’s length.

Earth, magnitude -4.0, and her moon, sometimes called “Luna”, “Selene” or “Cynthia”, but to most, just the plain old “Moon”, as viewed from the Sun, is in the constellation Gemini, The Twins.

The alternate names for the Moon appear now and again as we watch “lunar” eclipses, a scientist who studies the physical features of the moon is a “Selenologist” and during the days of the Apollo missions, the term “pericynthion” or the point in an elliptical orbit that passes closest to the Lunar surface, was heard.

The term may possibly be heard again as NASA plans and prepares to return to the Moon with the Artemis Program.

That is of course assuming the meatheads in Congress don’t cancel the whole thing, as they did with Apollo Missions 18, 19 & 20.

Apollo 18 was to land in a river-like channel-way called Schroter’s Valley in July 1973.
Apollo 19 was to land in the Hyginus Rille region in December 1973.
Apollo 20 was originally to land at Copernicus Crater or possibly the Crater Tycho. but, later the preferred landing site was changed to the Marius Hills, in July 1974.

All three flights were cancelled due to “budget concerns”. The cancelled Apollo 19 & 19 saved only 42 million dollars since all the flight hardware had already been built, delivered and was ready for flight.

The equipment are now are museum pieces.

We all know the reason they were really cancelled, don’t we?

I’m not saying it’s aliens, but…

Earth will reach her farthest distance from the Sun or Aphelion on July 4 at 2:10 AM CDT or 07:10
UTC, when the distance from the Sun’s center to Earth’s center will be 94,509,598 miles from our home star, as she and the Moon wobble through space, the Moon tugging on the Earth like an unruly pup on a leash.

Mars, magnitude +0.5, with his Moons Phobos and Deimos are in Pisces The Fish, shining in the east-southeast before and during early dawn.

He rises around 1:35 CDT and reaches an altitude of 41° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks.

Winter Solstice in the Martian Northern hemisphere occurs on July 21.

Dwarf Planet Ceres, magnitude 8.6, is in Gemini, The Twins.

Jupiter, magnitude –2.4, and his 79 moons and (invisible from Earth) ring, is in Cetus, The Sea Monster, rising at 1 AM and reaching an altitude of 50° above the south-eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks.

Jupiter glows to the upper right if Mars.

Saturn, magnitude +0.6 ,and his 82 moons and extensive debris ring system, is in Capricorn, The Sea Goat. He emerges above the south-eastern horizon around 1 AM and reaches his highest point in the sky at just after 4 AM, 42° above the southern horizon.

Uranus, magnitude +5.9, and his 27 moons and ring, in Aries, The Ram, is low in the east before the first light of dawn, between Venus and Mars.

Neptune, magnitude 7.8, and his 14 moons and ring, is in Pisces, The Fish, high in the southeast before the first light of dawn, between Jupiter and Saturn.

All five naked-eye planets are lined up in the dawn. From Mercury through Saturn, they run from low in the east-northeast to high in the south arranged in order of their distance from the Sun.

Dim Uranus and Neptune also lurk among them, resulting in seven planets being arrayed in the predawn sky.

Dwarf Planet Pluto, with his five moons shines at a dim 14.4 in Sagittarius, The Archer.

Dwarf Planet 136108 Haumea, her ring and moons Hiʻiaka and Namaka, shines at a faint magnitude of 17.4 in Bootes, The Herdsman.

Dwarf Planet 136472 Makemake with his moon S/2015 (136472) faintly shines at magnitude 17.2 in Coma Berenices or “Berenices Hair”.

Dwarf Planet 136199 Eris and her moon Dysnomia is barely visible in the most powerful telescopes at magnitude 18.7 in Cetus the Sea Monster.

At least five additional bodies with the preliminary criteria for identifying dwarf planets, and though not “officially” declared as such, are generally called dwarf planets by astronomers as well.

90482 Orcus, and his moon Vanth shines at magnitude 19.1 between Hydra and Serpens, The Snake.

50000 Quaoar,and his moon Waywot shines at magnitude +18.6 in Ophiucus,, The Serpent Bearer,

90377 Sedna, the coldest, and at one time, the most distant known place in the Solar System, glows faintly at magnitude +20.9 in Taurus, The Bull.

225088 Gonggong, and his moon Xiangli glows dimly at +21.5 magnitude in Aquarius, The Water Bearer.

2014 UZ224 nicknamed “DeeDee” for “Distant Dwarf” is 8.5 billion miles from the Sun, at magnitude +23.1 in Eridanus, The River.

Currently the most distant observable known object in the Solar System, Asteroid 2018 AG37, nicknamed “FarFarOut”, which is 12.4 billion miles or 18.5 light hours from Earth, glows at a barely detectable +25.5 magnitude in Lynx.

5044 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of June 8, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/

First Quarter Moon, or when the moon has only the Western side illuminated, will occur July 6 at 9:14 PM CDT or 02:14 UTC, July 7

During the Quarter Moons the Moon’s magnitude is -10.0.

The moon will be at Perigee or its closest approach to Earth on July 13, when she will be 221,994 miles from Earth.

July’s Full Moon occurs July 13 at 1:38 PM CDT or 6:38 UTC on July 24, when the Moon will be located on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun and its face will be fully illuminated.
July’s Full Moon is called “Buck Moon” in Native American folklore. This moon gets its name because the male buck deer begin to grow their new antlers at this time of year. It has also been called “Full Thunder Moon” & “Hay Moon”.

This is also the second of three supermoons for 2022. The Moon will be near its closest approach to the Earth and may look slightly larger and brighter than usual.

During a Full Moon the Moon’s magnitude is -12.7.

Last Quarter Moon, or when the moon has only the Eastern side illuminated, will occur July 20 at 9:19 AM CDT or 2:19 UTC.

The moon will be at Apogee or its farthest distance from Earth on July 26, when she will be 252,448 miles from Earth.

New Moon, when the Moon is located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky. will occur July 28 at 12:55 PM or 17:55 UTC.

This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere.

Though it won’t peak until the night and morning of August 12 & 13, the Perseid Meteor Shower begins July 17, and lasts until August 24. This shower, associated with comet Swift-Tuttle will peak at 60 meteors per hour in August.

The Delta-Aquariad Meteor shower peaks on the night of July 28th into the morning of the 29th.
This shower annually occurs from July 12 through August 23 is made up of debris from Comet Marsden Kracht and produces a ZHR or Zenith Hourly Rate of 20 meteors per hour.

The New Moon will provide dark for what should be an excellent opportunity.

Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Aquarius but can appear anywhere in the sky.

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This month’s meeting will be on July 12 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast Office at the Shelby County Airport,

Hope to see you there!

Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter