Meteor Shower Tonight to Rain Bits of Halley's Comet on Earth Thu May 5, 9:31 pm ET Bits and pieces of the famous Halley's Comet will light up the overnight sky in a promising meteor shower, weather permitting, skywatching experts say. The annual Eta Aquarid meteor shower will peak early tomorrow morning (May 6) and is expected to put on a dazzling display of "shooting stars" for skywatchers graced with good weather and clear skies. That's because the moon, which is currently in its unlit new phase, won't interfere with the meteor light show as it did with last month's Lyrid shower. The Eta Aquarids are meteors created by bits of left over material from Halley's Comet as it travels through the solar system on its 76 year orbit. This year, the display runs from April 28 through May 21, but May 6 should mark its peak, according to the American Meteor Society. [Video: Meteors from Halley's Comet] "Under ideal conditions (a dark, moonless sky) about 30 to 60 of these very swift meteors can be seen per hour," advises SPACE.com skywatching columnist Joe Rao. "And with a new moon on May 3 this is one of those years when observing conditions will be perfect." This sky map of the Eta Aquarid meteor shower shows where the meteors will appear to originate from during their display. The best time to see them will be early Friday morning before 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. Local Time. The Earth passes through the comet Halley's debris trails twice a year once in May, and again in October offering an appetizer for the comet's next trip through the inner solar system in 2061. Halley's comet last swung by in 1986. NASA scientists say that the combination of the Eta Aquarid meteor shower and lack of moonlight should offer a rare chance for avid meteor-hunting skywatchers. "This is your one chance this year to see meteors blaze across the sky without glaring moonlight dimming them," said NASA astronomer Bill Cooke, a member of the Space Environments team at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., in a statement. "Meteors can appear in any part of the sky," Cooke explained. "In fact their trails will tend to point back toward the radiant, so if you look that way the meteor may appear somewhat stubby. They'll appear much longer going by you than coming at you." Read full article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20110506/sc_space/meteorshowertonighttorainbitsofhalleyscometonearth .. Meteor watching is truly a gratifying experience and I cannot wait till tonight to watch them again. We go up to the solarium on the roof, lay on pool lounges, and just stare up at the heavens. Soon rapidly moving lights cross the night sky as the meteors with their trails pass through the solar system. The magic of the heavens never fail to astound me in their beauty and cosmic display of predictability and longevity, making Earth seem like a newborn child compared to the Universe. It is really a stellar gift to Earthlings in our brief existence on Earth; a time of getting it right. A time to leave the planet as we found it for future generations.
I will attempt to see this. The best time to see them will be early Friday morning before 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. Local Time. Don't you mean Saturday morning? I also read somewhere that it is between 3:30 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. Now I am really confused.
That's about one every 40 seconds... Quadrantid meteor shower won't have to compete with moonlight January 2, 2012 - Quadrantid meteor shower peak could hit as many as 100 meteors per hour, says NASA. The Quadrantid meteor shower will peak at 2 a.m. on Jan. 4.
Is cloudy here, can't see it... First of two comets approaches, visible with the naked eye Thu, Mar 07, 2013 - The first of two comets heading toward the sun this year made its closest approach to Earth on Tuesday and will be visible in the northern hemisphere beginning on Thursday.
Granny got her flashlight, lookin' up inna sky but she don't see it... Bright comet 'lighting sky' as it flies by Earth 8 March 2013 - Stargazers could enjoy a rare spectacle as a bright comet swings into the Northern Hemisphere.
Granny wantin' to know if it gonna melt `fore it hits the earth?... Astronomers Awaiting Comet ISON's Year-End Spectacular May 18, 2013 - Excitement has been growing in recent months over the approach of Comet ISON. Like other comets, this chunk of rock and ice is following a long, elliptical orbit around the Sun, and like other comets, when it nears the Sun later this year, its trailing stream of dust and vapor will catch the sunlight and become a long, luminous, tail. Many astronomers are predicting that when this celestial traveler sweeps by us later this year, it could turn out to be the comet of the century.
Comet's flight into sun reveals solar secrets... Comet Lovejoy flies into Sun to reveal solar secrets 6 June 2013 > A comet's close encounter with the Sun has given scientists a look at a solar region that has never been visited by spacecraft.
Granny says, Dat's right - first it was meteors - now dem space aliens is a-gonna fling comets at us... Mysterious objects between Jupiter and Neptune identified as comets Saturday 27th July, 2013 -- NASA says one of its science spacecraft has solved the mystery of small celestial bodies orbiting the sun between Jupiter and Neptune -- they're comets. See also: Natural particle accelerators seen in radiation belts around Earth Saturday 27th July, 2013 -- A massive, natural particle accelerator exists in the Van Allen radiation belts, a region of super-energetic particles surrounding Earth, U.S. scientists say.
Building blocks of life may come from comets... Comet crashes can create the building blocks of life: study Tue, Sep 17, 2013 - Violent impacts from comets and other hurtling bodies can pepper planets and their moons with the molecular building blocks of life, new research suggests.
Granny says pro'bly some space aliens hijacked it... NASA Gives Up on Lost Comet Probe September 20, 2013 NASA is calling off attempts to find its Deep Impact comet probe after a suspected software glitch shut down radio communications in August, officials said on Friday.
