ORIONID METEOR SHOWER--TODAY! Earth is passing through a stream of debris from Halley's Comet, source of the annual Orionid meteor shower. Forecasters expect ~25 meteors per hour when the shower peaks on Oct. 21st. No matter where you live, the best time to look is during the dark hours before sunrise on Sunday morning. Observers in both hemispheres can see this shower. On Oct. 19th, as Earth was making first contact with the debris stream, NASA's All-sky Fireball Network recorded 10 Orionid fireballs over the southern USA. Their orbits are color-coded baby blue in the diagram above. The location of Earth, where all the orbits intersect, is denoted by the red 'splat.'
Not every orbit in the diagram is an Orionid. The orange and green ellipses correspond to random meteors not associated with Halley's debris stream. If you watch the sky for a few hours on Sunday morning, you are likely to see a few of these 'sporadic meteors' among the dozens of Orionids. Happy meteor watching!
Not every orbit in the diagram is an Orionid. The orange and green ellipses correspond to random meteors not associated with Halley's debris stream. If you watch the sky for a few hours on Sunday morning, you are likely to see a few of these 'sporadic meteors' among the dozens of Orionids. Happy meteor watching!
