[meteorite-list] Different colors of meteors/shooting stars

From: Galactic Stone & Ironworks <meteoritemike_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue, 10 Sep 2013 20:09:10 -0400
Message-ID: <CAKBPJW8nMS5W06iGqUxcTs=1c_xAgCrFtC6uZH81Hm3ybS4A0Q_at_mail.gmail.com>

Hi Chris and List,

It's also worth noting that cameras have some of the same constraints
that the human eye does. Certain wavelengths of light are represented
differently using various types of lenses and chips - the same is true
for old 35mm film cameras and the most modern digital models. So, one
can draw general visual conclusions about the colors of a
fireball/bolide, but unless one is using the proper scientific
equipment, your eye or consumer camera may alter what you are seeing
in ways that make it difficult to make definitive judgements like
that.

Best regards and clear skies,

MikeG

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On 9/10/13, Chris Peterson <clp at alumni.caltech.edu> wrote:
> There may be some atmospheric effects, but I don't think they are the
> usual explanation for the different colors people report.
>
> Color vision is highly variable from person to person. The same color
> may be reported as pink, blue, or green by different people. This is
> especially true when dealing with point sources, or with transient
> effects. People are not good at judging the color of flashes. Some
> people see a lot of color in stars, others will call you crazy if you
> tell them that stars even have colors.
>
> After white, green is the most commonly reported color for meteors. As
> Marco pointed out, that is typically from atmospheric oxygen. But it is
> worth remembering that green also marks the peak of human color
> sensitivity, and even if fairly strong wavelengths outside the green
> region are present, the event may only be bright enough to stimulate our
> green receptors. This is an effect visual astronomers are well aware of:
> when you look at something like the Orion Nebula, most people see gray.
> A few, with good vision, will see faint green. That's an oxygen
> emission, which is much fainter that the dominant red hydrogen emission,
> but that one simply doesn't stimulate our red sensors enough to show
> color. So we see a "red" nebula as "green".
>
> Chris
>
> *******************************
> Chris L Peterson
> Cloudbait Observatory
> http://www.cloudbait.com
>
> On 9/10/2013 12:51 PM, Doug Ross wrote:
>> Thank you for the explanation, Chris. I have often wondered about this,
>> since various colors often seem to be reported by different witnesses to
>> the same meteor event. Wouldn't atmospheric filtering also affect the
>> perceived color, depending on the angle and distance from which a meteor
>> is viewed? In much the same way as the sun's color appears to change at
>> sunset or sunrise.
>>
>> Doug Ross
>> doug at dougross.net
>
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Received on Tue 10 Sep 2013 08:09:10 PM PDT