This weekend there is a chance to observe a pretty exciting meteor shower known as the Alpha Monocerotids. This minor shower started November 15th and will continue to be active until November 25th. The peak of the activity for the Alpha Monocerotids is expected to occur on November 21, 2009 at approximately 15:00 Universal Time. You may want to check out the meteor glossary and the meteor shower viewing page for general information and simple facts. General questions like when and where to look are covered in those pages, so check there first and then feel free to ask your questions by commenting in this post. Like other meteor showers, the Alpha Monocerotids take their name from the constellation that they seem to originate from. In this case it is Monoceros, a meteor shower gazer can locate Monoceros by finding the constellation Orion as illustrated below. Once you find Orion, you can then look for meteors shooting from Monoceros, also known as the Unicorn.
Monoceros - The Unicorn
Why do I find this shower so exciting? The Alpha Monocerotids produce variable rates, meaning that on any given moment during the peak anywhere from 5 to 400 meteors have been seen. I don’t want you to get overly excited and think that this is the biggest shower of the year, nor do I want to promise that these massive outbursts are guaranteed to occur. I’m simply making you aware that in the past this shower has shown some really special activity. In 1995, the enhanced rates lasted less than an hour and you had to be in the right place at the right time.
This year the Alpha Monocerotids have some good things going for it. Firstly, the peak occurs on a weekend and secondly the phase of the Moon will be a waxing crescent with 22% of the visible disk illuminated so there won’t be a lot of moonlight in the sky to hamper your view.
Get ready for the Geminids coming in December, join the mailing list, bookmark the site and keep your head up!
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 19th, 2009 at 3:04 am
Hi Meteor Mark,
I wonder will i get to see Meteor shower in Singapore?
Thank you
Chase
on Nov 19th, 2009 at 3:08 am
Chase,
Yes, I believe Monoceros is in the east for people in Singapore. The radiant is low on the horizon so don’t expect too much.
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 19th, 2009 at 4:02 am
When and what is the exact time that it will occur?
on Nov 19th, 2009 at 4:51 am
Teddie,
My friend, please read the post again. When it comes to meteor shower viewing there really isn’t an exact time it will occur. Imagine trying to track small rocks thousands of miles away and predicting when they will hit our atmosphere. It is still one of the hardest things for scientists to do. We can only estimate when a shower will be the strongest and try to be as precise as possible, but meteor showers are still almost impossible to accurately predict.
Keep your head up.
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 19th, 2009 at 2:47 pm
Hey, i’m super excited! It will be my first shower sighting ever. I am so fascinated by everything beyond our own planet, i’m considering going to college for astromony.
I can’t wait!
on Nov 19th, 2009 at 9:02 pm
hey Chase,
if the shower takes place at 15:00 UTC time, i live in the D.C. area and on the utc clock it says that its November 20 1:59. does that mean for me its gonna take place on November 20th which on the World clock would say its the 21st?
on Nov 19th, 2009 at 11:41 pm
Fab,
I’m not sure what you’re asking. The shower is supposed to be strongest around 15:00 Universal Time and will be active before and after that time. Please have a look at the definition of Universal Time in the glossary. Maybe you can rephrase your question, I’ll be glad to help. As far as I know 15:00 UTC on November 21 is 15:00 GMT which would be 3:00 PM in the United Kingdom and would be 10:00 AM in Washington D.C. on November 21. This would mean that it would be light outside in Washington D.C. and the United Kingdon; therefore the shower would be best viewed in the pre dawn hours of November 21, but the “true peak” would occur during daylight so anytime close to the peak in the morning when it is dark would be the best time.
I think Singapore is UTC+8 (I’m not 100% sure) so the peak for people in Singapore would be 11:00 PM on November 21 into the morning hours of November 22 because meteor showers are usually seen best after midnight and before dawn for the reasons described on the “Meteor Shower Viewing” page.
If you go to the “Meteor Shower Viewing” page on this site, there are a bunch of links to articles that explain why it is best to look at meteor showers in the morning. I hope this helps.
Keep your head up.
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 19th, 2009 at 11:47 pm
Mary,
Please don’t expect much from the Alpha Monocerotids, I’m happy you’re excited, but I don’t wnt you to think that this is a major event and deter you from pursuing other meteor shower gazing opportunities because nothing major occurs. Bookmark the site December has a treat that may really excite you.
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 20th, 2009 at 9:16 pm
im in egypt.. will i be able to see it? on nov 21st night/morning of november 22? did i get that right?
if so.. which direction should i look?? i could locate the orion but can’t seem to find the unicorn..
on Nov 20th, 2009 at 11:44 pm
Meteor Mark,
thanks ya i thought it was at 10:00 but i guess i was just thinkin to hard on the whole UTC time for the meteor shower
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 5:08 am
Fab,
It can get really confusing for anyone but you had the right idea.
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 5:12 am
Nky,
I think Monoceros is in the western sky, sorry I didn’t respond sooner I was sleeping. This is not a major event, but yes you could see some meteors in Egypt.
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 6:40 pm
Saw a huge one tonight. Lasted so long, I said,”Did you see that?” And my wife looked up a saw the end of it. Biggest one I’ve ever seen. Awesome!
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 6:41 pm
COOL!
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 6:41 pm
Also, I live in New Hampshire, USA
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Live free or die!
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 6:55 pm
For a brief moment I thought I might die. The end of it all should be similar. But for now I am free.
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 11:51 pm
My husband and I were on our patio, enjoying the evening around a fire, when in the sky I spotted, what I believed to be a meteor. We were so excited! Facing north, it went east to west, low in the sky, so bright and an amazing tail. So happy that I found your site. It comfirmed to me what we saw was a meteor.
Wow, I am still in awe.
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 11:53 pm
Carol,
Thanks for sharing the story. Sounds brilliant!
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 21st, 2009 at 11:54 pm
We live in Connecticut and it was about 5:45 pm, so Pete Twiss, I think we say the same one!
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 12:08 am
Carol,
That’s possible, but not probable.
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 3:27 am
Dear Meteor Mark,
I live in South Africa and want to know if what I saw last night (around 23h00 our time) was a meteor. I only saw one, but it was massive, beautiful long green tail, went behind a house, so I couldnt see where it went, but the next thing, it lit up the sky as if it was the end of the world, made colours you cant even describe properly, orange, blue, green and purple. It was amazing and very scary to experience if you dont know what you saw.
regards
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 9:24 am
I saw a beautiful meteor last night in New Haven, CT. It was around 5:30 or so and I was sitting on my deck facing northeast when it came into view. It was gliding like a plane coming in for a landing, fairly low on the horizon, just above the tree line. It was orange and yellow with a very distint tail. I’ve seen other meteors before but never one that appeared to be so close. It was beautiful. Sadly, that was the only one for the evening. Did anybody else in New Haven see it?
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 12:25 pm
I live in Orapa, Botswana. I was also knocking off from work around 11pm, I saw the town suddenly becoming bright and just that I looked on the north eastern side and saw a meteor going down, at first I thought two air planes have crushed on the sky. But then i realised this was the biggest star I have ever seen.It was really amazing, the colours were really beautiful. I guess 2010 is gonna be wonderful for me.
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 12:36 pm
Anitah,
Keep your head up!
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 1:07 pm
I to saw a huge beautiful meteor last night around 5:40 pm EST in the northeast, USA. It was a huge fireball with an amazingly long tail. It lasted over 5 seconds and I did see it burnout. I have only seen anything so large once before around 1977 and that one hit earth. This meteor was traveling northeast I think, I only wish I wasn’t driving my car but I slowed down to watch as there was no traffic. Glad to know someone else saw this too. I am still amazed and in awe, I will never forget this wonderful sighting.
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 5:58 pm
to KMM399, I am also in CT, Windsor, North of New Haven and I believe we did see the same meteor, your experience was very similiar to ours, low in the sky and ours was mid tree height and the trees are about 25 feet away, tall maples. Low in our sky too. We face Bradley Airport and see planes come in all the time, but we knew this was totaly different. Wonder what Pilots may have thought if they saw it?
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 7:41 pm
I live in Andover, MA and my whole family saw the same meteor around 5:45 PM on Saturday. The the ball was green and yellow and the tail was very long and red and yellow. It was the largest and most beautiful meteor, that I and my husband have ever seen in our entire lives, it was truly spectacular! We were so giddy, we kept checking the internet and the news to see if anyone else had experienced it. We will never forget it!
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 7:48 pm
Sara,
Thanks for your comment. You would be surprised as to how many of these events go unreported or even unseen. It’s a shame, but the good news is consider yourself lucky and special not everyone gets to experience such pure beauty.
Keep your head up!
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 22nd, 2009 at 11:48 pm
I live near the shore in northeast ct and saw a meteor driving home sat at about 5:45. It was gorgeous. It was just like an airplane- really slow and I could see every bit of it, a huge glowing orange ball and I was so excited. I want to see another!
on Nov 23rd, 2009 at 10:42 am
Dear Meteor Mark,
A lot of people sighted a meteor Saturday night over Southern Africa. My husband and I sighted the sky lit up over Hartbeespoort. It was amazing.
On the following link you can find a lot of the sigthings. Unfortunately a lot of the descriptions is in Afrikaans. But the sightings recorder here is as far south as Parys in the Free State sort of in the middle of South Africa up to as north as Mosambique and Botswana and on the west (Hartbeespoort) and east Durban. What is quite interesting is that only people in the north (Vivo on the border of South Africa) and in Botswana actualy heard and felt an explosion.
My question is what is the possibility that this meteorite actualy reached earth and what would be the most propable site of impact. Unfortunately so far no footage of the event.
Thanks.
Corne’
Thank you for your question. I don’t post comments with links in them. The explosion you heard was most likely the shockwaves from a sonic boom not the Fireball hitting Earth. Meteoroids enter Earth’s atmosphere at speeds of over 100,000 mph (160,000 kph) the speed of sound is approximately 770 mph (1239 kph). The explosion you heard was similar to thunder which is the snapping sound that super heated plasma makes it heats and cools and vibrates. Anything vibrating causes a sound, the meteor is is also very hot and heats up the air around it. Hot air gets bigger: it expands. As the air around the meteor gets very hot the air gets bigger very quickly and pushes against the air particles starting another vibration. These vibrations are what you are hearing when you hear thunder or see a fireball, the rumbling is caused by the vibration or sound bouncing of the ground and the upper atmosphere.
Upon entering the atmosphere the meteoroid may have been as small as a basketball and as large as a truck, however by the time this meteoroid got close to Earth, the meteorites were probably reduced to the size of cantaloupes or grapefruits.
Keep your head up and thanks again for the question. Please visit the website and join the mailing list and if you like the answer you received, feel free to treat me to a cup of coffee, the instructions are on the right side of the site.
Meteor Mark
http://www.meteorblog.com – MeteorBlog – Enjoy Meteor Shower Discussion
on Nov 24th, 2009 at 8:58 am
I live in Johannesburg, South Africa. I saw the meteorite on Saturday night driving home at about 11pm, it was the most beautiful thing that I have ever seen. It was a big orangy ball with a long tail, did realise what is was until after the fact. Really cool.
on Nov 24th, 2009 at 2:03 pm
I fly for South African Airways and on the night of the 21st we were over Zimbabwe on our way to Munich when the cockpit suddenly lit up a brilliant light blue colour. Aircraft around us (BA, Kenya, Lufthansa etc.) were suddenly all talking to each other in amazement. Most of us did not see the entry but only experienced the light. The Captain of the Kenian flight did however see it and stated that it was the biggest. closest entry he had ever expereinced.
Does anyone know if there is picture material?
on Nov 25th, 2009 at 6:51 pm
Johan,
There is a cool video on the home page of etablog.com right now of the African Fireball. I update the site every Thursday so it may be located somewhere else on the site. Hope you enjoy it.
Keep your head up.
- Meteor Mark
on Nov 26th, 2009 at 3:09 am
Just wondering if this shower is still active, either that or I am seeing things and am just crazy. HA its possible! While driving in city lights at approx 1:20 am Central early thanksgiving day I saw a blue-ish green streak that broke apart into atleast 2 pieces. Its “radiant” seemed to be directly overhead or close to it. I am in Louisiana, USA just for a reference. God I hate when these things happen and I am alone. Anyways just wondering what it could be. Also looking forward to the shower in December, hopefully you will have some viewing tips. I have been trying to show my 10 year old stepson how amazing these things are and we’ve been duped the last few showers with clouds or him falling asleep. Anyhow, Cheers!
Raegan
on Nov 26th, 2009 at 10:27 am
Raegan,
Thanks for your comment. Not all meteors/fireballs have to be associated with a meteor shower. Your description sounds like a Bolide, you can check the meteor glossary for a description. I also suggest taking a look at the meteor shower viewing tips page. Both of these pages are located in the upper right hand corner. There are some links there like Meteor Shower FAQ, Definition of Midnight and radiant which all will be helpful for December.
The holiday season is a great time to share meteor viewing with children. Keep your head up!
- Meteor Mark
on Dec 12th, 2009 at 7:47 pm
I saw a green meteor heading northeast through the sky…at about 6pm here in Swanzey, NH…thought at first it was a plane going down….I didn’t know that meteors came in different colors…the only color I’d ever seen was white.
on Dec 12th, 2009 at 8:15 pm
Lisa,
You can check this site for an article on Meteor Colors by searching in the upper right hand corner. They come in a lot of different cool colors. Thanks for the comment!
Keep your head up.
- Meteor Mark