SKYGAZERS are set for celestial fireworks this weekend with up to 10 meteors visible every hour.
The Draconids meteor shower occurs every October and can be seen with the naked eye.
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Although it starts tonight, the spectacle will peak on Saturday afternoon.
Experts say the best time to see it will be in the evening when it gets darker.
Tania de Sales Marques, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, told the PA news agency: “The Draconids are a short-lived meteor shower that is active from 6-10 October and is expected to peak at around 2pm UK time with a maximum rate of 10 meteors per hour.
“Draco will be at its highest point in the sky after sunset on the 8th, in the direction of North, however, the full moon will also be up, brightening up the sky and making it hard to spot fainter meteors.”
There are sometimes thousands shooting by but meteors are often too small and fast to spot this many without a telescope.
If you do want to try and spot the bigger visible ones, then your best chance will be in a rural area far away from light pollution.
Skygazers will also need to let their eyes adjust to the darkness.
“Like with any other skywatching activity, make sure to have an unobstructed view of the sky, as far away from sources of light as possible,” de Sales Marques continued.
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“Remember to dress warmly now that the evenings are colder and wait about 15-20 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark before looking out for meteors.”
And if you don’t get a chance to see the shower on Saturday, fear not.
It’ll remain visible until October 10, so you can have another attempt on Sunday.
Luckily, October has two meteor shower events so if you miss out on this one you may still be able to catch the Orionid shower in a few weeks.
The Draconid meteor shower, also known as the Giacobinids, is named after the constellation of Draco the dragon.
The streaks spawn from the comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner, which orbits around the sun for six-and-a-half years.
What’s the difference between an asteroid, meteor and comet?
Here’s what you need to know, according to Nasa…
- Asteroid: An asteroid is a small rocky body that orbits the Sun. Most are found in the asteroid belt (between Mars and Jupiter) but they can be found anywhere (including in a path that can impact Earth)
- Meteoroid: When two asteroids hit each other, the small chunks that break off are called meteoroids
- Meteor: If a meteoroid enters the Earth’s atmosphere, it begins to vapourise and then becomes a meteor. On Earth, it’ll look like a streak of light in the sky, because the rock is burning up
- Meteorite: If a meteoroid doesn’t vapourise completely and survives the trip through Earth’s atmosphere, it can land on the Earth. At that point, it becomes a meteorite
- Comet: Like asteroids, a comet orbits the Sun. However rather than being made mostly of rock, a comet contains lots of ice and gas, which can result in amazing tails forming behind them (thanks to the ice and dust vapourising)
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This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk
