Join CNN’s Marvel Principle science e-newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.
CNN
—
The final meteor bathe of 2023 is about to ship meteors streaking throughout the sky simply in time for the vacations.
The Ursids will peak Thursday evening by way of the early morning hours of Friday, in accordance with the American Meteor Society. Evening owls braving the chilly might see round 5 to 10 meteors per hour, the society stated.
This yr, the Ursids can be peaking on the identical night because the winter solstice, the longest evening of the yr for the Northern Hemisphere. On the night of the solstice, the solar can be at its most southerly place at 10:27 p.m. ET, according to EarthSky.
Climate circumstances permitting, the perfect time to view the meteors can be between 3 a.m. and daybreak native time on Friday, after the moon has set, in accordance with Robert Lunsford, fireball report coordinator for the society. The moon can be 74% full on the evening of the height, in accordance with the American Meteor Society, and can intrude with meteor viewing earlier within the night with its shiny mild, Lunsford stated.
The meteor bathe can be seen to sky-gazers within the Northern Hemisphere, and the extra northerly the viewer is the higher, Lunsford stated, because the radiant constellation can be greater within the sky earlier within the evening for these in Alaska or Northern Canada.
Not like the Geminids, which ship excessive charges of meteor sightings a number of days earlier than and after the height, the Ursids have a comparatively quick span of most exercise. The speed of 5 to 10 meteors per hour will solely be seen in the course of the evening and early morning hours of the height, Lunsford stated. A couple of days earlier than and after the height, the Ursids will produce round one meteor an hour, he stated. The Ursids bathe started in mid-December and can be lively till December 24.
“This bathe has produced outbursts of 25 to 30 an hour every so often. We don’t count on that. … However you by no means know,” Lunsford stated. When you missed the Geminids, “right here’s a reprieve to see your self some meteoric exercise earlier than the yr ends,” he added.
No particular gear is required to view a meteor bathe. NASA does not recommend using a telescope or binoculars due to their small fields of view, since meteors may be seen all around the sky.
The Ursids are an uncommon annual meteor bathe — its radiant, the purpose from which the meteors seem to originate, just isn’t a zodiac constellation. As an alternative, the Ursids seem to originate from the constellation Ursa Minor, in any other case often called the Little Dipper.
By logging the time, magnitude and different traits of meteor sightings, researchers can collect extra info on the area of area inside Earth’s orbital path — reminiscent of how dense particles clouds are, in addition to the time during which the planet travels by way of them, Lunsford stated.
“If we get sufficient folks to do this (log the time of meteor sightings), it maps out the cosmic mud that’s up there and helps us clarify what’s producing them (meteor showers), the place they’re and what to anticipate subsequent yr,” Lunsford stated.
As a result of the Ursids will not be as generally noticed as robust meteor showers just like the Geminids are, information on the Ursids could possibly be thought of extra worthwhile to researchers, Lunsford stated. Even informal sky-gazers can contribute to the information assortment by reporting their meteor sightings to the American Meteor Society through its website.
The Ursids are the final annual celestial occasion for this yr, however the first meteor bathe of 2024 just isn’t too far off — the Quadrantids will peak in the course of the morning of January 4.