What’s the Leonids Meteor Bathe? An Astrophysicist Explains

Stargazers rejoice: The Leonids are right here. 

This annual meteor bathe lights up the night time sky each November and can quickly peak on Nov. 16 and 17. Although they occur yearly, the Leonids present undeniably dramatic views and a glimpse into what makes meteor showers so spectacular.

For these hoping to catch a glimpse of the Leonids, Jonathan Blazek, an assistant professor of physics at Northeastern University, mentioned it’s useful to know what precisely they’re and the place they arrive from.

Generally talking, meteor showers are made up of particles left behind by orbiting comets. That materials, which comets shed as they move by the solar and warmth up, follows the identical orbit because the comet it originated from. It creates a path of particles that finally intersects and collides with Earth.

“This debris is typically quite small, from roughly a grain of sand to a small rock, and it burns up as it enters the atmosphere, leaving a bright trail that we see as a ‘shooting star,’” Blazek mentioned. “Because of our regular orbit, we experience each meteor shower at the same time each year.”

The Leonids meteor bathe is made of fabric left behind by the comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, which completes its orbit across the solar each 33 years. They get their title from their constellation of origin, on this case Leo, Blazek mentioned.

Meteor charges through the Leonids may be as little as three meteors per hour, in line with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Although the meteor charges are low, the Leonids are identified for being vibrant and typically even colourful. Traveling about 44 miles per second, they’re additionally among the quickest meteors.

The Leonids present significantly dramatic views due to their fireballs and Earth-grazer meteors, in line with NASA. Fireballs are brighter, bigger explosions that last more within the night time sky than the typical meteor streak. Aptly named Earth-grazers journey near the horizon and depart behind lengthy, colourful tails.

Outside of its common options, the Leonids meteor bathe additionally has one different declare to fame.

“Every 30 years or so, they produce what is known as a ‘meteor storm’ when we pass through a particularly dense clump of material from the comet,” Blazek mentioned.

Meteor storms are way more intense and contain a minimum of 1,000 meteors falling per hour. The Leonids placed on a very spectacular present in 1966 when 1000’s of meteors fell in simply quarter-hour. Since the final Leonid meteor storm was in 2002, this 12 months’s occasion will simply be a meteor bathe, Blazek defined.

As for the place and the best way to spot the Leonids meteor bathe, Blazek suggested following the standard guidelines round discovering a darkish spot as removed from metropolis lights as potential. 

The most meteor exercise will happen between midnight and dawn when we face the identical course because the movement of the Earth on its orbit,” Blazek mentioned.

This 12 months, stargazers hoping to glimpse the Leonids are additionally in luck. According to the American Meteor Society, a waning crescent moon will rise late and depart these prime Leonid viewing hours darkish for a bit bit longer.