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The one-year Orionid meteoroid shower — a dusty consequence ofthe head trip Halley ’s comet shit around the sunevery 76 years , on average — will peak this week just as the famed configuration it ’s named after rises into the autumn sky .
Active from Sept. 26 through Nov. 22 , the Orionids will peak in the early hours of Monday , Oct. 21 , when around 23 " shoot virtuoso " are expect per hour , according to theAmerican Meteor Society . The exact peak is auspicate to fall out at 1 a.m. EDT ( 0500 GMT ) .
An Orionid meteor shoots through the Pigeon Point Lighthouse in Pescadero, California.
However , a waning gibbous moon will be in the sky for most of the night , provide less - than - ideal viewing condition . ( Thefull " Hunter ’s moon"rises days before , on Oct. 17 . ) fit in to theAmerican Meteor Society , the bright moonlight will " seriously halter " views of this display . Therefore , you belike wo n’t want to bother find dark skies to view this year ’s event . Rather , it may be more advantageous to watch the 2024 Orionids from home , where you could hope to see a in particular undimmed shot star .
According toNASA , the Orionids are one of the most beautiful showers of the year . These meteors are known for their brightness level and pep pill . The Orionids are fleet moving company , predicted to coin Earth ’s atmosphere at 41 miles per second ( 66 kilometers per arcsecond ) , or around 148,000 mph ( 238,000 kilometre / h ) .
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Meteor showers are have by clouds of dust and rubble left in the innersolar systemby comets as they enter and leave to coil around the sun . As Earth fly through them , its atmospheric state strikes the material , stimulate shoot whizz .
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The Orionids are one of two annual meteor showers due to Halley’scomet , the only screw naked - eye comet that can theoretically be seen doubly in one human lifetime . Last in the internal solar system in 1986 and next due to chew the fat in 2061 , Halley ’s comet also causes theEta Aquarid meteoroid shower , which peaks in early May each year . Both shower can be image from both the Southern and northerly hemisphere .
Despite their far - off origin , the Orionids seem to come from a patch of sky close toBetelgeuse , a reddened giant star topology in the constellation Orion . The constellation is best live for Orion ’s Belt , which comprise three equally spaced stars : Alnitak , Alnilam and Mintaka . Also in the region are some of the bright virtuoso in the nighttime sky , such as Sirius , Rigel , Procyon and Capella . Hunter will reach its highest point in the sky around 2 a.m. in the Northern Hemisphere during the peak of the Orionids .
