London, England — 16 December 1743
Slow, waving ‘rocket’
A correspondent of the Royal Society reports on an unusual sighting in these terms: “As I was returning home from the Royal Society to Westminster, (at) 8h 40m, being about the Middle of the Parade in St. James Park, I saw a Light arise from behind the Trees and Houses in the S. by W. point, which I took at first for a large Sky-Rocket; but when it had risen to the Height of about 20 Degrees, it took a motion nearly parallel to the Horizon, but waved in this manner, and went on to the N. by E. Point over the Houses. “It seemed to be so very near, that I thought it passed over Queen’s Square, the Island in the Park, cross the Canal, and I lost Sight of it over the Haymarket. Its Motion was so very slow, that I had it above half a Minute in View, and therefore had Time enough to contemplate its Appearance fully, which was what is seen in the annexed Figure.” “A seemed to be a light Flame, turning backwards from the Resistance the Air made to it. BB a bright Fire like burning Charcoal, enclosed as it were in a open Case, of which the Frame CCC was quite opaque, like Bands of Iron. At D issued forth a Train or Tail of light Flame, more bright at D, and growing gradually fainter at E, so as to be transparent more than half its Length. The Head seemed about half a Degree in Diameter, the Tail near 3 Degrees in Length, and about one Eighth of a Degree in Thickness.” Note: Given such a precise observer, it is difficult to call this phenomenon an ordinary meteor. Fig. 31: “Waving rocket” in London ‘Slow’ meteors are known to exist but they are poorly explained: Camille Flammarion called them bradytes but he acknowledged they were extremely rare. If this happened today we would suspect a satellite re-entry, but there was no such thing in 1743.
Source: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London A3 (1745): 524. Case: W286