2nd major meteor shower peaks early morning of April 22

(NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory)


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THE NIGHT SKY — This year’s second major meteor shower will peak sometime late Friday night and early Saturday morning at a rate of 18 meteors per hour, according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

The shower takes place between April 16 through April 25, but early April 22 is the best time to see the most meteors. The moon will have almost reached its “new moon” phase, creating a dark, moon-less night and the perfect viewing conditions for a meteor shower, JPL said.

The shower, aptly named “the Lyrids,” will radiate through the Summer Triangle, which is comprised of three bright stars: Deneb in Cygnus, Altair in Aquila and Vega in Lyra. Vega and Lyra are found high in the eastern sky a few hours after midnight during April 2017.

Though the shower will radiate from the Summer Triangle, meteor-watchers don’t have to find the radiating point to get a good view of the shower. JPL suggests looking eastward a couple hours after midnight on the 22nd to get the best view.

The star Vega resides far north of the celestial equator, so the Lyrid meteor shower will favor the Northern Hemisphere but is also visible in the Southern Hemisphere, according to EarthSky. The higher Vega climbs in the sky, the more meteors viewers are likely to see.

The Lyrid shower is among the oldest of known meteor showers, going back some 2,700 years and is the result of the Earth passing through a debris trail of comet Thatcher, Accuweather said.

The Lyrids will be the strongest meteor shower since the Quadrantids of early January.

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Liesl Nielsen

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