
Eta Aquarids Meteor Shower
When is the next meteor shower? Its already started and will remain active until May 28th this year. Since April 19th the Eta Aquariids meteor shower has been active. The shower will start to really heat up around May 3rd. The Eta Aquariids usually treats us to more than a full week of meteor activity. The shower will begin to get stronger and stronger as we near the peak on May 6th
Beginning with about 20 to 30 meteors per hour on May 3rd the shower will dazzle us on May 6th with up to 80 meteors per hour. The shower’s name is the Eta Aquariids and will appear to radiate from the constellation Aquarius. Viewers will be able to see approximately one or two meteors per minute. Because this year the phase of the moon is a Last Quarter there will be a lot of extra light in the sky as 50% of the moon will be illuminated during the peak, but I’m hoping for a good showing from this event. Let’s keep our fingers crossed and hope for some luck, as there are no guarantees that it will be this active.
When and where should one look to see the meteor shower?
Meteors can be seen anywhere in the sky. A good starting point for this shower is the radiant as each shower has a distinct point in the sky where meteors seem to come from. This shower like others is best viewed before dawn and after midnight in any time zone. The radiant is the point of origin where the meteor’s backward path can be traced. In this event the radiant is the constellation Aquarius. For people living north of the equator, Aquarius is located in the southeastern sky low on the horizon and for those south of the equator one should look toward the east but higher in the sky.
What is the cause of the Eta Aquariids meteor shower?
Have you ever heard of Halley’s Comet? This display in our May sky is caused by that very comet even though it last came near to Earth in 1986. This meteor shower has been happening for a very long time around the same time of year because as we pass through the dust trails and debris of Halley’s Comet from centuries and centuries ago meteoroids clash with the Earth’s atmosphere and create meteors. Halley’s Comet is responsible for two meteor showers a year, the Orionids Meteor Shower of October and this one. Halley’s Comet orbits our Sun and returns to view from Earth every 75 to 76 years.
Some exciting facts about the Eta Aquariids meteor shower:
Eta Aquariids meteors are really fast and enter the Earth’s atmosphere at a whopping 68 kilometers per second or approximately 152,000 miles per hour! They are usually very intense and frequently leave behind smoke trails or persistent trains.
As always I welcome your comments and questions. I enjoy reading and responding. I will try to respond to all the comments, just bookmark the site and check back with me once in a while. Try the meteor glossary if you don’t understand all the terms I use in the posts. There is a meteor shower virtually every month from now until the end of the year. If you’ve enjoyed my post and find the information useful, how about buying me a cup of coffee, as I will need them for when I get up early or stay up late to enjoy all the upcoming meteor showers.
Here are the dates for the next meteor shower.
η-Aquariids Meteor Shower
Start Date: April 19
Peak Date: May 6
End Date: May 28 – Meteor Mark’s Birthday!
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Keep your head up!
- Meteor Mark