We concluded, earlier in the fall, a campaign to video the night side of Venus in search of fireballs. The techniques and technology are like observing lunar meteors, except instead of using a focal reducer to widen the field, use a 2x or 3x barlow lens (as seeing allows) to enlarge the image of Venus (which narrows the field) at moderate to high magnification.

I came across an article in the March 2023 issue of Sky and Telescope (pp. 52-53). The article is titled “Hunting for Venusian Fireballs” by Tom Dobbins. The Venusian fireball hunt ran from June 16 to July 7, when the planet is favorably placed and physically close to the Earth to maximize the chances of observing fireballs. A similar three-week period occurred August 28 to September 18, when the planet was in a similar crescent phase but in the predawn hours.

As of this writing I have received no reports of any Venus meteor candidates. If you have any reports, please e-mail them to me at bmcudnik@pvamu.edu

Fireballs are always fascinating to watch. Check out the International Meteor Organization website to read up on the latest sightings of fireballs over various parts of the world. Most objects that create the fireballs are large enough to generate an observable impact flash on the Moon. So whether a shower is active or not, there is always the potential to witness a meteoroid impact flash on the dark (shadowed) section of the waxing or waning crescent Moon.