Calling all night owls: Orionid meteor shower's Monday night peak to dazzle stargazers

[mia]

Calling all night owls: Orionid meteor shower's Monday night peak to dazzle stargazers

Your favorite fall meteor shower is back! The Orionids peak tonight, although they should be visible anytime between roughly October 2 and November 7 of 2019.

They’re called the Orionids because the meteors will appear to come from the general location of the constellation Orion. (Fun fact: they’re made of debris from Halley’s comet.) Even if you’re not much of a stargazer, this one is easy to find. Look for three stars in a row; that’s the “belt” that Orion the hunter wears.

Early morning will be the best time to watch, if the weather holds out—the National Weather Service in the bay area recommends 4 a.m. to 7 a.m.

California and the southwest will likely get the best views, since clouds are forecast for much of the rest of the country. But if you can see Orion at all, it’s worth watching to see if meteors show up. This shower tends to produce 20 to 25 meteors per hour at its peak....

https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/the-orionids-one-of-the-top-5-meteor-showers-of-the-year-will-peak-early-next-week/602578?fbclid=IwAR3kjFziHPcAdnmQ79jpGlEcWXRLUD5MjOh7cUxV-evx99Jhdpj2aD5cDLc

Mark the night of Oct. 21-22 on your calendar. There will be shooting stars, and plenty of them with the peak of the Orionid meteor shower. The meteors are dust and debris left behind by the famous Halley's comet.

One of the best meteor showers of the year will peak early this week and will treat onlookers with nearly two dozen meteors per hour, as long as clouds do not interfere.

People planning to view the Orionid meteor shower should mark their calendar now for the night of Monday, Oct. 21 into the early morning of Tuesday, Oct. 22 as the shower reaches its peak.

“I would rank the Orionids in the top five meteor showers of the year,” AccuWeather Astronomy Blogger Dave Samuhel said. ”It will be the strongest shower since the Perseids of August.”

https://lifehacker.com/how-to-watch-tonights-orionid-meteor-shower-1839225877

[proud patriot]

1. cool

thanks for posting

[Lochloosa]

2. Why can't they schedule these earlier. They are always so late.

[JDC]

3. lol

[jberryhill]

5. I never understood why astronomers study stuff that isn't even there during the day

[Delmette2.0]

4. Why is it almost always cloudy here when this happens.

Snow, rain just about any other day would be ok, but not during an meteor shower.

[IADEMO2004]

6. Cold Wind Rain here. Solo-A Star Wars Story, Guinness, and popcorn standing in for meteors.