“This year, the Leonid meteor shower coincides almost perfectly with a new moon…”
WALTER PACHOLKA, ASTROPIC/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
There is something magical about watching a meteor shower. Part of this is due to the unpredictability of the rain: conditions may seem perfect, but you may still find yourself disappointed, especially when you’re promised hundreds of meteors per hour. But there are times when you gather friends to enjoy the show together, and you’re happy to see just a handful of shooting stars.
This year, the Leonid meteor shower coincides almost perfectly with a new moon, giving us a wonderful chance to see lots of meteors streaking across the sky. There may not be hundreds every hour, but I would still recommend trying to take a look.
Meteor showers occur around the same time each year because they coincide with Earth’s path around the sun, taking us through patches of debris left by passing comets and asteroids. This causes more pieces of dust than usual to enter our atmosphere, where they burn up in the bright flashes of meteors.
The Leonid meteor shower comes from dust left behind by Tempel-Tuttle, a 3.6 kilometer diameter comet that orbits the sun every 33 years. When approaching, the Leonids become a meteor storm rather than a meteor shower, with thousands of meteors visible every hour. The last storm was in 2002, so we can’t expect another storm for another 10 years.
Even so, there should be a good chance of seeing meteors like the one pictured if you’re lucky enough to have clear skies. The Leonid meteor shower begins on November 6 and will be active until the end of the month, but its peak is on the evening of November 17, until the morning of the 18th. The November new moon is on the 20th, so on the evening of the shower’s peak it will be a very thin waning crescent. The best time to search will be just after midnight local time, no matter where you live in the world. Compared to other meteor showers, the Leonids tend to have a gradual peak, so it’s worth looking at the days around the 17th if you have a clear night on either side.
Meteor showers are named after the constellation where the meteors appear to come from in the sky, but that doesn’t mean you have to find Leo to see the Leonids. Leo is, however, an easy constellation to spot and is visible from most parts of the world, except extremely southern latitudes. To find Leo, look for his iconic upside-down question mark or sickle pattern. It will be near the Plow, or Big Dipper, in the sky. If you need additional help finding it, you can use an app on your phone.
To make the most of a meteor shower, first make yourself warm and comfortable. The show may involve sitting for a long time, so I recommend a hot water bottle and a way to look up without hurting your neck. Stay away from light pollution as much as possible. But if you want to watch from home, turn off the lights and let your eyes adjust. Appreciate!
These articles are published weekly on
newscientist.com/maker
Abigail Beall is a feature editor at New scientist and author of The art of urban astronomy. Follow her @abbybeall
