Reports On The Leonid Meteor Storm Of 1866

[Weather-history]

Every 33 years during November, there is an increase in the number of Leonid meteors that is witnessed annually from the Earth as the planet passes through the most concentrated patches of cometary debris left by Comet Swift-Tuttle in its wake. The last such occasion was in 1999. The number of meteors witnessed during these periods depends on whether the Earth passes or by-passes these patches. In 1866, the Earth passed through such a concentrated stream of cometary debris and here are reports on the storm that was witnessed.