Photo: Belish (Shutterstock)
At this time of year, the sky offers welcome visual treats for mere mortals on the ground. Maybe you’re thirsting for the next big thing in the cosmos, given that Lyrids have come and gone this month and the pink Super moon has already subsided into a less breathtaking phase.
Don’t despair: space offers more reasons to venture outside in the wee hours of the morning to see another show that’s been in full swing since April 19: the Eta Aquarid meteor shower. This special shower comes from the legendary Halley’s Comet and lets burning fragments of rock and ice shoot through the cosmos 148,000 miles per hour.
Don’t worry, you can still see these very fast-paced space rocks if you follow normal stargazing protocol – especially if you live in a more southern latitude.
What are the Eta Aquarids?
They come from Halley’s Comet, which itself is only visible from Earth every 76 years. Due to Halley’s icy, gaseous, and dusty composition, parts of the comet flake off each April and May when the Earth crosses its orbital path, creating this particular shower. The shower is at a breakneck pace, but luckily for stargazers, the meteors leave “ionized gas trails that glow for a few seconds after passing the meteor”. according to Earthsky.
G / O Media can receive a commission
Halley’s comet actually has another meteor shower that presents itself in October, the Orionids. However, the Eta Aquarids will perform from April 19 to May 28 this year, with their peak occurring on Thursday May 5
How to see the Eta Aquarids
The meteors come from their ray, the constellation Aquarius. In particular, the star of origin of the meteor is Eta Aquarii, which can be found in the Y-shaped asterism “water jug” in the northern part of Aquarius. Earthsky points out.
It is not essential that you locate the beam of a meteor shower to see it, as rocks shooting through the sky usually cover an area wide enough to peek just by looking up . However, the peak of the radiator indicates when a meteor shower will peak. Earthsky explains how this works in relation to this particular shower:
For the Eta-Aquariids, radiation rises highest in the night sky shortly before sunrise. This is why you can expect to see most of the meteors early in the morning.
Although the other meteor showers that occurred this year were prime observation for people in northern latitudes, the Eta Aquarids are most visible to people in the southern hemisphere (although they are still visible to people in the northern hemisphere).
In other words, if you live in the American South or Southwest, you’re getting prime views. But no matter where you live, the show will still be visible, albeit less dazzling. NASA notes that the shower typically sends 10 meteors an hour across the sky in the northern hemisphere, but that could get as high as 20 in more southerly areas.
The best way to see the show is to venture outside late at night. Earthsky notes that the shower technically peaks in the late evening while the radiation is still relatively low, but subsides as the radiation moves higher in the sky:
Late in the evening is the best time to see earth eaters, meteors that make exceptionally long streaks across your sky. When the radiation rises higher – that is, when the hours of the night pass before dawn – you see shorter meteors, but more meteors.
As usual, avoid light pollution and look up if you decide to wander outside of the visual feast.