Interplanetary dust particles of micron-size probably associated with the Leonid meteor stream

Abstract

An interplanetary dust particle event, coincident with the Leonid meteor shower and lasting approximately 70 hours, was recorded by a sensor on the Vanguard III satellite. During this interval the satellite's microphone system registered impacts of approximately 2800 dust particles with momenta exceeding 10(exp -2) dyne-second. The impact rate varied by as much as two orders of magnitude within a few hours. The microphone system was almost omnidirectional, so the radiants of the dust particles cannot be defined. Association of these dust particles with the Leonid meteor stream is suggested by the coincidence in time and by the location of the satellite. Vanguard III traversed five major meteor streams, but the impact rates significantly exceeded the background rate only during this one interval. This is the first case in which a significant increase in the directly measured impact rate of dust particles possibly can be associated with a major meteor stream.