Lying flat on their backs in freezing weather, attendants at Harvard's Oak Ridge Observatory have been watching eagerly every night since Tuesday for concentrated showers of Leonid meteors.

The showers have regularly come about November 14 each year, with large displays at 33-year intervals. Intense storms were seen in 1799 and 1833, and one observer in 1866 said that the shower was "as thick as a Christmas snowstorm." But in 1899 the display was much diminished, and astronomers have been watching during the last 2 years to see whether the earlier intensity will recur.

So far the results have been disappointing. Harvard astronomers had expected the maximum show to be Wednesday night, but the shower was not large. The astronomers at Pennsylvania's observatory await the big display tonight, and it is probable that Harvard will again have observers at Oak Ridge if the weather continues to be clear.