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Science Southern Hemisphere: 2008 Eta Aquarid meteor shower is upon you
Science Southern Hemisphere: 2008 Eta Aquarid meteor shower is upon you | Southern Hemisphere: 2008 Eta Aquarid meteor shower is upon you |
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| by William Atkins | |
| Saturday, 03 May 2008 | |
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Science DiscussionsThe Eta Aquarid meteor shower is caused by dust released from the nucleus of Halley’s Comet. If past events are any indication, this year’s shower will include plenty of bright meteors. Halley's Comet orbits the Sun once every 76 years. It has been seen on Earth for each of its visits to the inner solar system since 240 B.C. To see the Eta Aquarid meteor shower, you should look generally east in the night sky a couple of hours before sunrise in the morning. The meteor shower will also be seen in the Northern Hemisphere, but not as spectacularly as in the Southern Hemisphere. In the lower northern latitudes the Eta Aquarid meteor shower will be seen in the general vicinity of the “Water Jug of Aquarius,” the “Circlet of Pisces,” and the “Great Square of Pegasus.” People in the Northern Hemisphere are likely to see about 10 meteors every hour, while those in the Southern Hemisphere observers will probably observe about 30 meteors per hour. On the morning of Sunday, May 4, 2008 (probably the peak in viewing), the Moon will be only faintly noticeable—it’s in its new phase (only thin crescent). This dark environment will provide a very favorable viewing time for people in the Southern Hemisphere for the Eta Aquarids. If possible, stay awhile from city lights or other artificial lighting that will hamper you seeing them. You are probably best to just use your eyes, rather than telescopes or binoculars, because the meteors fly across the sky at a pretty fast rate. They will generally be visible for about 45 degrees across the night sky. Some additional information for viewing follows on the next page. Plus, sky maps are provided at another website for those of you in the southern and northern parts of Earth. |
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