Leonid letdown amp; star-crossed spectators

Other scientists, though, weren8217;t as prepared to see the brighter side of life. Complained Rajesh Kochhar of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bangalore: 8220;We had told the Press that what was being predicted was based on theoretical calculations only. Since allsuch calculations are based on physical parameters and mathematical analyses, a slight change here or there can send your prediction for a six.8221;

Kochhar, ironically, was branded a spoilsport by everyone who heard him say: 8220;Yes, you can look forward to it, but don8217;t expect it to be as grand as it is being made out to be.8221; Chandra Bhushan Devgun, Delhi-based amateur astronomer and telescope-maker, blamed it all on the media. 8220;So much was written about it in the newspapers and shown on TV in the course of a single day that people expected fireworks in the sky,8221; he said.

In the Capital, even Lt-Governor Vijay Kapoor8217;s sporting diktat leading to most street lights being switched off a step Pune8217;s police commissioner refused to take, fearing a spurt in crime didn8217;t help. Nirupama Raghavan, Director of the Capital8217;s Nehru Planetarium, blamed it on the lights left on in people8217;s homes. So, if Aqua8217;s Barbie Girl, Lene, had to switch on CNN to watch the celestial spectacle, it may have been because TajPalace was bright with lights.

But Devgun wasn8217;t complaining. After a night studying the muted spectacle at Hakdarpur village, 15 km from Pataudi in Haryana, he was happily scanning the pictures he had shot with his Nikon idiot-proof camera. 8220;Though they might look somewhat underexposed to a professional, for us they are just great,8221; he gushed.

Unlike many others in his fraternity, Narlikar didn8217;t jump to conclusions. He didn8217;t blame bad weather or city lights, for instance. 8220;I understand in some countries the shower was up to people8217;s expectations,8221; he said. 8220;We must conduct a post-mortem to understand why it didn8217;t happen here.8221;

But while the frenzy was on, people turned the occasion into an excuse for a nationwide party.

In Mumbai, the much-awaited celestial show became a no-show with thick clouds making an early, completely out-of-turn, appearance over the city, hiding the brilliance of comet Temple-Tuttle8217;s golden dust.

At 2 am the cloud cover, quite unusual for this time of the year,showed no signs of let-up and the thousands who craned their heads skywards at Marine Drive, Gateway of India and every vantage point in the city to catch a glimpse of the celestial shower of the Leonids got evidence of the more mundane one: the occasional drizzle.

Those who packed their bags and left for Lonavla and Khandala for a clear view of the Leonid showers had no better luck either.

In Pune, since Police Commissioner K K Kashyap refused to switch off street lights, thousands braved a drizzle to throng the historic Sinhagadh Fort, the Khadakvasla Lake in the neighbourhood of the National Defence Academy, the terrace of the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics IUCAA, and, of course, the Parvati Temple located on a hill. The drums they had brought along with them, though, remained silent, for there was nothing to celebrate in a night whiled away with antakshari. Luckier scientists, meanwhile, went to Narayangaon, 90 km away from Pune, for a grandstand view of thecelestial fireworks from the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope.

In Delhi, all roads led to National Highway 8, as people drove to what is popularly known as the Jumbo Point, or the spot where international flights touch the runway of the Indira Gandhi International Airport. The other hot destination was Jawaharlal Nehru University, whose notorious Parthasarathy Rocks were said to offer a light pollution-free view of the sky, unaffected by city lights. But many an amateur astronomer had to return from the gates, as the university8217;s security staff refused to let any non-campus resident into a campus that has seen a spurt in lawlessness in the recent past.

In Bangalore, fashion designer Manoviraj Khosla partied through the night, like thousands of others who guzzled beer and crunched chips in anticipation of an unforgettable late-night show. 8220;We went out at 1 a.m. to check the meteors,8221; Khosla said. 8220;Of course, we didn8217;t see anything much, but then someone let off a rocket in the vicinity. For a minute,everyone thought this was it. Seeing that rocket at that time of night in my condition was wild enough for me!8221;

Some scientists, though, were guarded in their approval of these all-night festivities. 8220;People are looking for drama, but it does no harm,8221; Kochhar philosophised. 8220;I just wish there was some sobriety because the credibility of science is at stake.8221;

Narlikar was more generous. 8220;It was not an over-reaction on the part of the media or the scientific community to have brought this celestial event to the notice of everybody,8221; he said. For him, the level of interest 8220;was just right.8221;

The tale was same in rest of Asia, apart from Japan and South Korea. The sea of humanity that had assembled at the beaches of the Japanese resort of Kujukuri, 60 km from Tokyo, had the privilege of witnessing the cosmic phenomenon at its dazzling best.

The South Koreans, who ignored freezing temperature to have a look at the shower, also went back a contended lot. 8220;It was really spectacular,8221; said a Seoulstudent.

But for the 2,000-odd people who gathered in the Chinese capital in the early morning despite sub-zero temperature and icy Siberian wind, the event turned out to be a major disappointment. Residents of Hong Kong were also dejected by frequent drizzle that reduced the spectacle to a damp squib.