Thread: What are the best meteor showers to watch?

Which are the most visible/strongest with the most meteors to be seen per hour? Eta Aquarids is coming up this weekend, is it worth going out to watch? How about Lyrids in June, Delta Aquarids or Capricornids in July, or Perseids in August?

The Perseid and Leonid meteor showers are usually the best of the year. The Perseids is in August, so viewing would be more pleasurable on a warm summer night opposed to the Leonid which is November, although generally the Leonids offers more meteors per hour.

The Leonids in November, The Lyrids in April ( There's more than one Lyrid meteor shower" the Geminids in December, and the Perseids in August are the ones I make an effort to go out for, although the Lyrids in April is not one I make a point of going out of town for.The phase of the Moon can make a huge difference in how manymeteorss can be seen. If the Perseids and the a Full Moon coincide, I may make the trip to my Mom's hometown either before or after that full moon. I went at the end of June last year instead of going in the middle of August. There were already a few Perseids even then.

The Moon was new on April 22, so it was a good time to observe the Lyriads this year.

? There are hundreds of meteors that streak through the atmosphere of the earth each and every day and night. There are times when the earth passes through what was the path of a comet and our atmosphere will pick up a lot of tiny specks of dust left behind from that comet. When that happens, it is called a meteor shower. There are many meteor showers every year. Think about the rotation of the earth. As the Earth spins, it moves into the path of the dust in space so you want to look mostly towards the east and near the constellation that the shower is named for.


? Meteor showers can occur several days prior, and several days after, their projected peak time.?


? The darker the sky in your viewing location, then the more you can see of even the fainter meteors. ? If you are in a light polluted area, you will only be able to see the biggest and most bright meteors. The bright moon will definitely interfere with this meteor shower this year, no matter where you go to view it. They are best to watch if you have a friend with you. You do not need any optical equipment. Meteors are best viewed with your naked eyes.

Great Article on Meteor Showers:
http://stardate.org/nightsky/meteors/

A NASA article on Meteor Showers:
http://solarsystem.jpl.nasa.gov/scitech/display.cfm?ST_ID=2329

This is the 2012 calendar of meteor showers from the International Meteor Organization.
http://www.imo.net/calendar/2012

Their home page can tell you how to get the very most out of your meteor shower viewing experience.
http://www.imo.net/

? Take a friend, lawn lounge chairs, blanket, snacks, beverages, maybe a radio or ipod music, and I hope that you have a great time! ?