The Identification of Meteor Showers with Application to Southern Hemisphere Results

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Abstract
Further meteor shower results observed by radar at Christchurch, New Zealand, are now given, including results at high rates, and all Christchurch data are compared with visual observations, and radar results from Adelaide, for the declination range from +26°.5 to about −50°. Seven meteor showers appear in all three surveys, and can be regarded as certain, and another 6 to 9, which are each reported twice, are probable. An additional 9 to 10 radiants, however, are found by each survey alone. The errors inherent in the identification of meteor showers from radar data are considered. Different techniques have been used at Christchurch and at Adelaide. It is concluded that no single method of analysis is fundamentally better than any other. The technique of shower identification depends partly on the nature of the background rate, which may be due either to sporadic meteors, or to the resultant of many minor radiants. The resolution of this uncertainty is necessary before the occurrence of less active showers can be confirmed. The rate-count method has been extended to multiple range bands, resulting in a useful additional means of sorting out the significance of peaks in the rate curves.

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