If you enjoy gazing at the stars, make sure you look up tonight because a ‘beautiful’ meteor shower is about to light up the night sky.
The Orionid Meteor Shower, which takes place every autumn when Earth passes through a stream of debris from Halley’s Comet, will peak this evening with up to 25 shooting stars every hour.
It will be at its most spectacular between midnight and dawn tomorrow and Sunday.
To find the Orionids, members of the public should find a spot away from streetlamps and other sources of light pollution.
The meteors can be seen with the naked eye so there’s no need for binoculars or a telescope, although a period of 20 minutes is advised to allow the eyes to adjust to the dark.
The radiant for the Orionids (the point in the sky the meteors appear to come from) is in the constellation of Orion, hence the name ‘Orionids’
At their peak, there could be more than 20 shooting stars flying overhead every hour, each travelling at speeds of up to 41 miles (66 kilometres) per second.
However, there are two key problems that skywatchers might encounter.
The first is the weather: most of the UK is expected to be blanketed by cloud tonight and early tomorrow morning, bar a few pockets in the south east and east of England.
It is a similar outlook in the early hours of Sunday, although this time it will be parts of the south west of England, Ireland and Wales that might be able to peer through the cloud.
The second issue is our lunar satellite, which will be a waxing crescent just before becoming a half moon — making its illumination close to 50 per cent.
This means this year’s conditions are not particularly favourable because a brighter moon makes it harder to spot meteors.
However, even if the moon obscures the peak the Orionids will still continue until November 7, so you may be able to catch them, albeit at a slightly reduced rate.
According to Royal Observatory Greenwich, the Orionids is an ‘extra-special’ display that reliably produces shooting stars that are visible across the globe.
‘Hunting for meteors, like the rest of astronomy, is a waiting game, so it’s best to bring a comfy chair to sit on and to wrap up warm as you could be outside for a while,’ it said.
‘For the best conditions, you want to find a safe location away from street lights and other sources of light pollution.
‘The meteors can be seen in all parts of the sky, so it’s good to be in a wide open space where you can scan the night sky with your eyes. But if you trace the paths that the meteors take, they seem to originate from the constellation of Orion.’
Described as ‘one of the most beautiful showers of the year’, the Orionids (pictured here in 2016) occur every autumn when Earth passes through a stream of debris left by Halley’s Comet
Meteors, also known as shooting stars, come from leftover comet particles and bits from broken asteroids.
When comets come around the sun, the dust they emit gradually spreads into a dusty trail around their orbits.
Every year, Earth passes through these debris trails, which collide with our atmosphere and disintegrate to create fiery and colourful streaks in the sky.
However, the events don’t pose a threat to humans as the objects nearly always burn up in our atmosphere before reaching the planet’s surface.
‘The Orionids, which peak during mid-October each year, are considered to be one of the most beautiful showers of the year,’ NASA says.
‘Orionid meteors are known for their brightness and for their speed. These meteors are fast – they travel at about 148,000 miles per hour (66 km/s) into Earth’s atmosphere.
‘Fast meteors can leave glowing “trains” (incandescent bits of debris in the wake of the meteor) which last for several seconds to minutes.
‘Fast meteors can also sometimes become fireballs; look for prolonged explosions of light when viewing the Orionid Meteor Shower.’
Halley’s Comet, which left the sand grain-sized particles that produce the Orionids, comes around the inner solar system every 75 or so years.
It was last visible with the naked eye in 1986, and won’t appear again until the summer of 2061.
In the meantime, we’re left with viewing the meteor shower that comes from its ‘comet litter’ as it flies through the atmosphere.
Halley’s Comet on March, 8 1986. The space rock, which left the sand grain-sized particles that produce the Orionids, comes around the inner solar system every 75 or so years
‘Some people view the Orionids as extra special as the meteors are actually pieces of Comet 1P/Halley, famously known as Halley’s Comet,’ the Royal Observatory Greenwich said.
‘The comet swings by the earth only once every 75 – 76 years but this annual shower provides some compensation for those who may miss that once-in-a-lifetime event.
‘As the comet follows its path around the sun, it leaves a path of tiny debris.
‘The cometary debris enters our planet’s atmosphere at speeds of around 41 miles per second, vaporising from friction with the air causing the streaks of light we call meteors.’
The Orionids is one of two showers created by the debris from Halley’s Comet; the other is the Eta Aquariids in May.
Following the Orionids, there are a handful of other meteor showers that will take place this year, including what NASA calls the ‘best meteor shower of the year’ in the Geminids.
This occurs every year between December 4 and December 20, peaking between December 14 and December 15.
The Royal Observatory Greenwich says the Geminids, which are thought to be intensifying every year, light up the night sky with up to 150 shooting stars per hour.
Remaining meteor showers in 2023
Orionids: October 21-22 – 25 per hour – Fast with fine trains
Taurids: October 10-11 (Southern), November 12-13 (Northern) – 5 per hour – Very slow
Leonids: November 17-18 – 10 per hour – Fast and bright
Geminids: December 14-15 – 150 per hour – Bright and plentiful, few trains
Ursids: December 22-23 – 10 per hour – Sparse shower
Note: Dates refer to each shower’s peak
Stay tuned: The table above shows the remaining meteor showers still to come in 2023
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This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk
