Radar observations of the daytime β-Taurids and ζ-Perseids

Abstract

ABSTRACT We measure the activity, orbital characteristics, and mass index of the strongest daytime Taurid meteor showers (ζ-Perseids and β-Taurids) as observed by the Canadian Meteor Orbit Radar during 2002–2020. This survey recorded ∼2 × 104 stream orbits and more than 4 × 104 single-station events with speed measurements, for meteoroids with masses ${\sim }1 \times 10^{-7}{\, \mathrm{kg}}$ and sizes ${\sim }5 \times 10^{-4}\, \mathrm{m}$. ζ-Perseid activity occurred during the interval 56○ ≤ λ⊙ ≤ 92○ and peaked at λ⊙ = 77.0○, while the β-Taurids were active during the overlapping period 85○ ≤ λ⊙ ≤ 103○ and peaked at λ⊙ = 95.0○. The corrected out-of-atmosphere velocities at these activity peaks were 26.4 and 26.3 km s−1, respectively. The showers display a broad period of activity with an asymmetric profile, with a gradual increase at the beginning and a sharper decrease after the peak. The mass indices of the ζ-Perseids and β-Taurids during their periods of activity were found to be 1.81 ± 0.05 and 1.87 ± 0.05, with the ζ-Perseids reaching a minimum of 1.71 ± 0.05 around the peak of activity.