STARS IN THEIR EYES
Last chance to see Orionid meteor shower at its brightest – with dozens of shooting stars every hour
Miss this meteor shower? Fear not, there's an even bigger one coming very soon
TONIGHT will be the last chance to catch the Orionids meteor shower at its biggest and brightest, with dozens of shooting stars every hour.
Experts at the Royal Museums Greenwich say the annual Orionid meteor shower is usually the most reliable around.
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According to Nasa, it's one of the most beautiful meteor showers of the year too.
The Orionids are expected to peak from the early hours of Monday (October 21).
Although, experts say stargazers should be able to catch the shower for several days either side of this maximum date.
But it's best not to leave it too late to look, otherwise the meteors might be too faint to see.
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The Orionid meteor shower is associated with Comet Halley, and produces bright shooting stars.
Some 25 shooting stars are expected to flash through the sky every hour.
They are particularly fast, too, capable of travelling at around 148,000 mph.
October has been a busy month on the celestial calendar.
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We only recently got to enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime comet that swings by Earth every 80,000 years.
However, we have just recently had a big, bright Hunter's supermoon - which could pose a problem when trying to see the Orionids.
Incredible moment a fireball comet is spotted racing past stunning aurora towards Earth
Tonight will be a bright waning gibbous Moon, high in the sky, which may cast some glare onto the sky.
If you are lucky enough to catch a glimpse, they should be visible across the UK and the US - weather permitting.
Fear not though, as there are more meteor showers due to happen for the rest of 2024.
Wait until December and there's a huge Ursids meteor shower just before Christmas.
At its peak, we're expecting a whooping 150 shooting stars per hour.
What's the difference between an asteroid, meteor and comet?
Here's what you need to know, according to Nasa...
- Asteroid: An asteroid is a small rocky body that orbits the Sun. Most are found in the asteroid belt (between Mars and Jupiter) but they can be found anywhere (including in a path that can impact Earth)
- Meteoroid: When two asteroids hit each other, the small chunks that break off are called meteoroids
- Meteor: If a meteoroid enters the Earth’s atmosphere, it begins to vapourise and then becomes a meteor. On Earth, it’ll look like a streak of light in the sky, because the rock is burning up
- Meteorite: If a meteoroid doesn’t vapourise completely and survives the trip through Earth’s atmosphere, it can land on the Earth. At that point, it becomes a meteorite
- Comet: Like asteroids, a comet orbits the Sun. However rather than being made mostly of rock, a comet contains lots of ice and gas, which can result in amazing tails forming behind them (thanks to the ice and dust vaporizing)
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