Have you always been fascinated with meteors and have been dreaming about witnessing an authentic meteor shower? It’s October once again and every year during the month, the Orionid meteor shower occurs and it’s happening tonight.
The Orionids occur when Earth goes through a stream of dust left by Comet Halley as a residue. Halley makes a homecoming to our solar system every 76 years. When that happens, its icy nucleus sheds tiny pieces of rocks and dust. These pieces of debris burn up eventually in the atmosphere and rip like shooting stars across the sky.
Orionids are famous for their speed. According to a report by NASA, they can travel at a speed of 148,000 mph into the atmosphere of the Earth. Since they move so fast, they naturally leave a trail of bright “trains” and even tend to become fireballs which glow as brightly as Venus or Jupiter in the evening sky.
"With city lights and the moonlight, you might be lucky to see two an hour," said Anthony Cook, astronomical observer of the Griffith Observatory, in an interview with L.A Times. "But if they are bright, it will be like free fireworks."
However, the viewing conditions this year are not entirely ideal. Meteors that appear fainter will most likely be drowned by the light coming from the nearly full moon during the weekend.
NASA recommends the best way to watch the Orionid meteor shower is by lying down on your back with your feet pointing towards the southeast if you are coming from the Northern hemisphere. The best time to do so is anytime between midnight and dawn. You should allow your eyes to adjust in the dark for around 30 minutes. Then, you can start to relax and enjoy the light show. Don’t forget to also catch a view of Jupiter overhead and Mars towards the Eastern sky.
