This year's annual Leonid meteor shower peaks tomorrow and Saturday evening across the US. It will coincide with a five-day old crescent moon that sets before midnight.
In recent years the number of meteors have been declining and are not expected to improve for a couple of years. Nevertheless, there is much more going on in the night sky. Jupiter is visible all evening and Venus rises early.
The constellation Leo and its radiant (see illustration) will rise in the eastern horizon around midnight and will be highest above the horizon just before dawn.
The meteors originate when the orbital path of the earth collides with the debris left behind by
comets.
These bits and pieces of comet detritus enter the earth’s atmosphere
with the resulting vaporization creating the streaks of light we call
meteors.
The debris associated with the comet Tempel-Tuttle
results in this November display. Like other meteor showers, this one
will be best viewed after midnight. Turn your gaze toward the
constellation Leo the Lion, where the shooting stars appear to emanate.
Regulus, the brightest star in the constellation Leo the
Lion, dots a backwards question mark of stars known as the Sickle. If
you trace all the “shooting stars” from the Leonid meteor shower
backward, they appear to radiate from this area of the sky. A dark rural location with minimal light
pollution provides for optimal viewing opportunities.
Tempel-Tuttle
is a periodic visitor that will return in 2031. it is worthy of
mention that the Leonids can be stunning on rare occasions. With the
reappearance of Tempel-Tuttle every 33 years the debris left in its wake
can result in meteors up to a rate of 1000 an hour! 2001 was a very
good November and 1966 was breathtaking.
The best time for observation is just before dawn although the shower is active beginning November 6 thru December 2. It is observable for a couple of weeks either side of the peak viewing dates.
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