Meteor showers

Stargazers might be in for a treat Monday night with an “all or nothing” meteor shower, as Earth passes through a disintegrating comet's debris.

“If the debris had slower ejection speeds, then nothing will make it to Earth and there will be no meteors from this comet.” When it passed Earth again in 2006, it was in nearly 70 pieces. SW3 was first discovered by German observers Arnold Schwassmann and Arno Arthur Wachmann in 1930, the post said.

This weekend, Earthlings might be treated to the sight of a new meteor shower. Astronomers certainly hope it happens.

In addition, the potential meteor shower offers a rare chance for astronomers to get their hands on some comet material. In fact, one astronomer, Jérémie Vaubaillon, plans to get even closer by flying in a jet over New Mexico and Arizona during the meteor shower. And, for the last several decades, Earth's orbit has been bringing our planet ever closer to crossing the resulting cloud of debris. But some other comets might break apart when volatile compounds within them such as water heat up and transition from the solid phase to gas. SW3 is fairly close to the sun by comet standards; it completes an orbit of our star once every five years. Those meteors could flare up when our planet passes through the pieces of a disintegrating comet called Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 (SW3). It isn't just an exciting opportunity for skywatchers; comet scientists eagerly anticipate the encounter as well.

Meteor showers are among the most enjoyable astronomy events, with shooting stars streaking through the sky as Earth plows through a field of debris left ...

"This will also allow your eyes to be fully adjusted to the dark surroundings." To preserve your night vision, avoid looking at any light sources while skywatching, such as a cellphone screen or a streetlight. EarthSky said that if it evolves into a true meteor storm, it could be on par with the famous Leonid meteor storm of 1966 when there were as many as 40 meteors per second. Image courtesy of NASA/JPL If this comes to fruition, it could spark a brief but intense meteor shower over North America. "When viewing events such as these, one should expect nothing extraordinary to happen but certainly hope for the best!"

PORTLAND, Maine (BDN) -- The Pine Tree State's meteor shower forecast for the second half of 2022 is lackluster, at best. Summer's popular Perseids are ...

Meader said trying to view possible celestial events like the Tau Herculids can be frustrating. “Normal meteoric events like the Perseids or the Geminids produce an average of one a minute,” Berz said. Some are predicting a comet show above Maine on par with the spectacular Leonid meteors showers of 1998 through 2001. You’ll need to find a dark spot, away from streetlights or other artificial lights. Looking into the matter further, astronomers realized SW3 had fractured into a few pieces, with increased dust and particles trailing behind in a brilliant tail of reflected sunlight. You won’t need a telescope or even binoculars to watch. “This is going to be an all or nothing event. Follow the handle’s arc to the bright, reddish star Arcturus, which is the brightest star in the constellation Bootes. If the heavenly show does happen, the meteors will appear to come from just above and to the right of Arcturus. Like our own planet, they orbit the sun, which illuminates their long, streaming debris tails. Scientists didn’t find it very interesting until 1995 when they watched it get 600 times brighter than normal — so bright, its faint smudge could be observed by naked eyes. The only way to know for sure will be to hope for clear skies and then go outside and have a look. If the debris from SW3 was traveling more than 220 miles per hour when it separated from the comet, we might see a nice meteor shower,” said Bill Cooke, who leads NASA’s Meteoroid Environment Office at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. “If the debris had slower ejection speeds, then nothing will make it to Earth and there will be no meteors from this comet.”

The Tau Herculids meteor shower could be a dramatic cosmic display, and the first "meteor storm" since 1966, or a no-show, astronomers say.

"When viewing events such as these, one should expect nothing extraordinary to happen, but certainly hope for the best!" The best meteor showers involve hundreds of meteors per hour — but most are in the single figures. Fortunately, the stellar light show will occur on a moonless night, making it easier to view. "If the debris from SW3 was traveling more than 220 miles per hour when it separated from the comet, we might see a nice meteor shower. "This is going to be an all-or-nothing event," Bill Cooke from NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office, said in a statement, adding that visibility will depend on the speed of the comet. North America might be treated to a starry spectacle late Monday night into Tuesday morning, as the Earth passes through the remnants of a defunct comet.

The Tau Herculids meteor shower could be a dramatic cosmic display, and the first "meteor storm" since 1966, or a no-show, astronomers say.

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Dozens of meteors from the Geminids fill the night sky. Meteor storms can consist of thousands of meteors an hour, far more than regular meteor shower like the ...

A dramatic fusillade of Leonids sprayed from the Sickle of Leo across the starry sky as seen from the longitudes of Europe and the Middle East. The roughly hour-long outburst peaked at a rate of one or two meteors per second as seen by any given person. This display contained a high proportion of faint meteors and a relative absence of fireballs. We were about ready to give up on the Leonids when they put on a stupendous display in 1966. Comet Giacobini-Zinner was back and both it and the Earth seemed correctly positioned for a replay. Thirteen years after the meteor storm of 1872, the Andromedids made a return appearance, with Europe again favorably placed to view them. The comets were looked for again in 1858 and again in 1865 but were never seen again. One observer from Ireland later wrote, "It would be impossible to say how many thousands of meteors were seen, each one of which was bright enough to have elicited a note of admiration on any ordinary night." There are several historic records of meteor displays believed to be Lyrids, notably in 687 B.C. and 15 B.C. in China, and A.D. 1136 in Korea when "many stars flew from the northeast." It was then that he noticed the most extraordinary, luminous meteors rising out of the sky from the east and northeast. Recognition of this point, called the radiant, was one of the most notable astronomical discoveries of the nineteenth century. Often considered to be one of the most magnificent showers on record. It creates a mental picture of shooting stars pouring out of the sky like water from a sprinkler, but that is simply not the case.

Keep your eyes on the cloud cover forecast for Monday night into Tuesday morning, when Earth will pass through the remnants of a comet and we could possibly ...

That’s when astronomers realized the comet had become about 600 times brighter and went from a faint smudge to being visible with the naked eye during its passage. The shower’s radiant (the point from which all meteors stream) will be almost straight above Baja California. We won’t know until we get there though, even for people in areas with forecasts for perfectly clear skies.

Stargazers might be in for a treat Monday night with an “all or nothing” meteor shower, as Earth passes through a disintegrating comet's debris.

“If the debris had slower ejection speeds, then nothing will make it to Earth and there will be no meteors from this comet.” When it passed Earth again in 2006, it was in nearly 70 pieces. SW3 was first discovered by German observers Arnold Schwassmann and Arno Arthur Wachmann in 1930, the post said.

The Tau-Herculids Meteor Shower set for Monday night could put on quite the celestial show as Earth is set to enter the debris field left from a comet that tore ...

"Anywhere may get the best view if it happens so if it is clear, go outside and enjoy the sky," he says. The moon will be new, so sky gazers won’t have to worry about moonlight washing out the sky. "Even if it is a dud, the moon will not be a problem for the night, so this is a great time to observe the sky anyway. The peak of the meteor shower will be late Monday night into the pre-dawn Tuesday morning hours. "It could be clumped together or spread out so much we only encounter a few. "The particles are very hard to see, and we are not entirely sure how displaced the (cometary) debris is," Demeter said.

There's a chance you might see a slight meteor shower known as the tau Herculids this long weekend. Earth will pass through debris trails of a broken comet, ...

And if this meteor shower doesn't live up to your expectations, don't worry: You have plenty of other opportunities to wish upon a star. But other scientists are a bit more reserved, thinking we might not see anything that lives up to a vivid, stunning, and sparkling meteor shower. And observations from 2009 show that some fragments might be moving fast enough!

May end may come with a brilliant show of meteor showers as the fragmented debris of comet SW3 is expected to pass through the Earths skyline.

The comet was again visible to the Earth in 2006, but this time it had approximately 70 fragmented pieces, which later were shattered into many more pieces. The views expressed here are that of the respective authors/ entities and do not represent the views of Economic Times (ET). ET does not guarantee, vouch for or endorse any of its contents nor is responsible for them in any manner whatsoever. People are expected to enjoy a spectacular view as the sky brightens up because of the shooting stars. This comet again appeared in 1995 as it became 600 times brighter this time, and it was visible even through naked eyes. The comet was again visible to the Earth in 2006, but this time it had approximately 70 fragmented pieces, which later were shattered into many more pieces. This comet again appeared in 1995 as it became 600 times brighter this time, and it was visible even through naked eyes.

The Tau Herculids Meteor shower is due to light up the night sky with its peak viewing for people in the UK being May 30 - May 31st 2022.

As well as the Leonid meteor shower in November before the year ends with another two in December! Two are due in October, The Draconid meteor shower earlier in the month with the Orionid meteor shower nearer the end. The next shower is due in mid August and is the The Perseid meteor shower.