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EmailSee the Almanac's Meteor Showers Guide for 2012 with best viewing dates and tips. Hope you "catch" a shooting star!
Meteor Showers Viewing Tips
- To answer the most common question: Yes, you can see these meteor showers from ANYWHERE in the sky, provided it's clear and dark, away from all the city lights.
- Where to look? The best place to start is near the radiant or "point of origin" of the meteor shower. This is where the flight course starts from.
- On below chart, see the "date of maximum" which shows when meteor showers will be the strongest.
- Note that the "best viewing" times are usually predawn and late evening—when the Earth turns into the path of meteoroids as they enter the Earth's atmosphere.
- You don't need any special equipment. In fact, binoculars do not work for meteor showers. The naked eye is best.
- Spread a blanket on the ground and look up in the dark night sky!
2012 Meteor Showers Guide
See the monthly Sky Watch for highlights of the night sky and a printable sky map!
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Comments
I have anephew who love
I have anephew who love watching night sky, he want to know when will be a metor shower in florida, in june or July,
and what time is the best time to watch metor showers? thank you for your time
my nephew is 9 year old. thank you for your time and understanding? Wanda
Hi Wanda, the meteor showers
Hi Wanda, the meteor showers for this summer will be the Delta Aquarid and the Perseid, in July and August, both visible from Florida. Please see the chart above. Thanks!
Wondering why your rates do
Wondering why your rates do not match those published by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada nor do they even match your USA counter part http://www.farmersalmanac.com/meteor-showers/?
I did send along the details but have not heard anything other than looking at your site 4 months later the details are still not updated.
Our source for the meteor
Our source for the meteor showers listed in the Almanac is the American Meteor Society (AMS). See: http://www.amsmeteors.org/meteor-showers/meteor-faq/
See # 7 on that page. We've picked a moonless, rural sky, which is different from an absolutely dark sky (which might see over 100). We note this on the meteor shower page in the printed Almanac and also under the chart on this page.
A few months ago, I found a
A few months ago, I found a rock that looked like a meteorite. Then, I think a week ago, I looked it up online and found out it was a meteorite but, I did a little more research and found out it was a Lunar Meteorite!!! I'm also hoping I will see some some meteors when I go out with my telescope again!
I've been a Seattle "city"
I've been a Seattle "city" girl most of my life. In 2006 we moved to the "country" in eastern Washington State. I have never seen anything as spectacular as I did at 11:20pm on September 9, 2010.(I even marked my calendar in case this is an annual event)
I was gazing at the eastern sky, when a huge bright green "fireball" with a very long tail passed before my eyes traveling in a northerly direction. I was absolutely "star-struck" to say the least! What did I witness? I googled everything that I could think of, but I have never been given any inkling of what I may have witnessed. Most of the folks that I tell my story to just kind of say "oh really" or they blow me off.
Do you have any idea of what I witnessed that night?
I take my dog on late night walks on our property and am always on the lookout for the beautiful star shows. Ideas, Please? Thank You.
Sounds to me like you got to
Sounds to me like you got to witness a view of the Northern Lights
One autumn morning in late
One autumn morning in late 1994 I woke up at 3:00 am to drive an hour for work at a near by town. I was driving out on my dirt road where I was able to vveiw an enormous fir ball which was probably an orphan meteor. It was so bright it light up the road and my car like bright day and I thought it would crash on me so I stopped the car. To begin it was very irredescent blue then faded toa warm pinkish red and then disapeared leaving and faint red tail. Was so exciting to see. I thought I would share this with you. Thank you Brian
Thanks for sharing, Brian!
Thanks for sharing, Brian! That's a once-in-a-lifetime sighting!
What is exactly time named
What is exactly time named "predawn" and "late evening"? When exactly should I observe the stars? Is "late evening" be after midnigt, e.d. 'tomorrow', next date?
Predawn: an hour or so before
Predawn: an hour or so before morning twilight. Best time to view most major showers.
Late evening: approximately between 10 pm and midnight (or a little past).
In general, most major meteor showers are best seen after midnight; some do not even appear until after then. Usually, a better time to see them is after 2 a.m., and the best time is about an hour or so just before morning twilight.
Geminids, however, can be seen starting earlier, such as around 9 or 10 pm, until morning twilight.
Sometimes Draconids may be visible at nightfall through early evening.
My wife and I live about 30
My wife and I live about 30 minutes south of San Antonio, TX and are wanting to know when the best time for us to try and see the Halley comet Eta Aquarid meteor shower will be and what direction we should be looking? Can anyone help us out please?
I'm not sure which direction,
I'm not sure which direction, but a friend of mine said that it'll start sometime between 2 and 3 AM, and SpaceWeather.com says that the best time to watch would be before tomorrow's sunrise.
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