Your best bet for catching a breathtaking glimpse of the Leonid meteor shower this month
Have you heard of the Leonid meteor shower? It comes around every November, but the chances of seeing it this year are much higher than last year. The shower happens at the same time every year, when Earthโs orbit crosses the orbit of Comet Tempel-Tuttle, according to Space.com. A trail of dust is left behind the comet, and when Earthโs orbit crosses that trail, pieces of the comet fall toward our planetโs surface. Luckily for us, meteors are visible to the naked eye, and the shower will peak overnight Monday into Tuesday (Nov. 16-17) around 3 a.m.
Meteors, blue moon and Mars, oh my! Beautiful triple threat on tap for skywatchers
Mars will appear brighter than at any other point during the year on Oct. 13, when it will be closest to Earth. โSo, a little over every two years, Mars and Earth are closest together in their orbits and, thus, Mars is at its brightest in our nighttime sky. (ยฉ 2012 Michael Orso)Blue moon on HalloweenFor the first time since 2001, trick-or-treaters will get the chance to experience a Halloween full moon. A blue moon, by the most popular definition, according to Gross, is when two full moons appear in a single month. โWe will have full moons on Oct. 1 and 31, so that means that weโll have a blue moon on Halloween,โ Gross said.
Halleyโs Comet is bringing a meteor shower that will peak tonight! When and how to watch
(CNN) โ The Eta Aquariid meteor shower is expected to peak on Tuesday, but a nearly full moon could outshine the show. May is the best spring month to view meteor activity for those in the northern hemisphere, according to the American Meteor Society. However, this meteor shower favors sky watchers in the southern hemisphere, where between 20 and 40 meteors can be seen each hour. The source of the Eta Aquariid meteor shower is Halley's Comet. This happens again in October, which creates the Orionid meteor shower.
KPRC 2 photographer captures video of apparent meteor streaking through Texas sky
HOUSTON โ A KPRC 2 photographer captured video of a sight that is out of this world. Cesar Martinez said he was driving southbound on U.S. Highway 59 early Monday morning near Beasley, Texas, when his vehicleโs dashcam caught video of a bright green flash in the western sky. The activity seen on camera appears consistent with video of confirmed meteor sightings. While itโs not clear if Mondayโs sighting is related, the Lyrid meteor shower reaches itโs peak this week. According to NASA, this is one of Earthโs oldest known meteor showers.
Watch for the Lyrid meteor shower this week
The first meteor shower of spring, known as the Lyrid meteor shower, will present a night skywatching show beginning on Sunday evening and peaking on Wednesday night. There hasn't been a meteor shower to light up the sky since early January, and this one will be visible around the globe. Typically, the Lyrid meteor shower can showcase between 10 and 20 meteors per hour during the peak, but it's difficult to estimate how many will be visible. On Wednesday night during the peak of the shower, about ten meteors will be visible per hour. The Lyrid shower is one of the oldest known, with records of visible meteors going back 2,700 years, according to EarthSky.
The decadeโs first meteor shower is happening this weekend
The new decade has arrived, and Mother Natureโs first gift to us all is an amazing meteor shower that will take place this weekend. The Quadrantid meteor shower will be easiest to see during the predawn hours Saturday, but is expected to begin late Friday. The Quadrantid meteor shower, which is known to produce 50-100 meteors, was named for a constellation that exists no more: the Quadrans Muralis. An astronomer by the name of Peter Jenniskens identified the parent body of the shower in 2003 as the asteroid 2003 EHI. EarthSky reported that if the asteroid is indeed the Quadrantid showerโs parent, the meteors come from a rocky body โ not an icy comet.