This is a report from The Guardian Unlimited site - it has such a long URL that I decided against a link.

Showers Spoil Meteor Extravaganza

From the Press Association Thursday November 18, 1999 03:37 PM

The most spectacular meteor shower for 33 years proved a washout for many stargazers as heavy rainclouds blanketed large parts of Britain.

The display of celestial fireworks caused by the Leonid meteors crashing into the earth's atmosphere were visible in only a few British locations, among them Edinburgh.

Many stargazers were disappointed to find that the weather obscured the gallery of shooting stars - reported by NASA to be raining down at a rate of about 1,700 per hour at the height of the shower.

Astronomers at the Armagh Observatory in Northern Ireland were among those frustrated by the weather.

Scientist John McFarland said: "It is a disappointment, but we are at the mercy of the elements.

"It's been overcast and I haven't been able to see anything at all. It's especially frustrating for me because I was also in Cornwall for the eclipse earlier this year and was unable to see that because of cloud."

Astronomers in the Middle East and the rest of Europe were treated to the best views while scientists on the east coast of the US reported spectacular displays.

Meteors are tiny dust particles shed by comets which burn up as they enter the Earth's atmosphere, leaving fiery streaks across the night sky.

The Leonids are left in the wake of the comet Tempel-Tuttel, which orbits the Sun every 33 years. They are seen each year, but occasionally the Earth's orbit takes it through the middle of the meteor trail.

When this happens large numbers of meteors pierce the atmosphere at 45 miles per second, producing spectacular shooting star displays.

On rare occasions a meteor "storm" occurs. During one of these events the sky can be ablaze with meteors and the Leonid storm of 1833 was the most dramatic in modern history.

Penny